Kiev, Aug 21:
A Russian missile barrage overnight Thursday killed at least 12 people in Kyiv as explosions echoed across Ukraine’s capital throughout the night, local authorities said.
At least 33 people were wounded, according to Ukraine’s Emergency Service. The air raid alert remained active into the early morning hours Thursday.
The strikes hit 12 locations across Kyiv’s Darnytskyi, Sviatoshynskyi and Solomianskyi districts, damaging residential buildings, a medical facility and an educational institution. Emergency crews were at the scene and pulled people out from under the rubble.
In Solomianskyi district, the top two floors of a 9-story residential building were destroyed and fires broke out on other floors. People were also trapped in two residential buildings and a school shelter.
60-year-old Larysa Bondaruk sat on the ground, holding her cat, Chanel, which had been rescued by firefighters.
With tears in her eyes, she said that her neighbour’s grandson had been trapped under the rubble and died. Her apartment was badly damaged.
“A rocket hit the roof. It was incredibly loud, immediately, debris and doors were blown out. There were columns of smoke, columns of fire, screams, crying and despair,” she said. “Two people were killed in our building, but the rescuers responded quickly and professionally. I am grateful to them for that.”
Russia has intensified ballistic missile attacks on the capital to wear down Kyiv’s air defence stocks. Kyiv has limited systems capable of intercepting ballistic threats, while supplies of missiles for its US-made Patriot air defence systems remain chronically constrained.
US President Donald Trump had authorised Ukraine to obtain licenses to produce Patriot air-defence systems, but later reversed that decision.
Ukraine, meanwhile, has intensified its own campaign of long-range strikes against weapons depots, military facilities and other strategic targets deep inside Russian territory, seeking to degrade Moscow’s ability to sustain its attacks on Ukrainian cities.