Russian military unleashed multiple waves of air strikes on Kyiv overnight in what officials said appeared to be the largest drone attack on the city since the start of the war ahead of the anniversary of its founding on Sunday.
Ukraine’s Air Force said it downed 52 out of the 54 Russia-launched drones, calling it a record attack with the Iranian-made ‘kamikaze’ drones, in what also appeared to be the first deadly attack on Kyiv in May and the 14th assault since the start of the month.
Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said a 41-year-old man was killed when wreckage fell near a gas station, and a woman was injured. Metro reports.
Falling debris killed the man and injured the woman in the city, Kyiv.
The Ukrainian Air Force said Russia had targeted military and critical infrastructure facilities in the central regions of Ukraine, and the Kyiv region in particular.
Serhiy Popko, head of the capital’s military administration, shared an update on Telegram:
‘Today, the enemy decided to “congratulate” the people of Kyiv on Kyiv Day with the help of their deadly UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles).
‘The attack was carried out in several waves, and the air alert lasted more than five hours.’
Kyiv Day – the anniversary of its founding 1,541 years ago – is normally marked by street fairs, live concerts and special museum exhibitions.
But this year residents were awoken in the middle of the night by an air raid alert that lasted for more than five hours.
Several districts of Kyiv suffered in the overnight attacks, officials said, including the historical Pecherskyi neighbourhood.
In the Holosiivskyi district, debris set a three-storey warehouse on fire, destroying about 1,000 square metres of building structures.
