BBC Photo: Buildings in several areas of the capital were damaged in the first big attack on Kyiv since late September
Source: BBC
DST News: A wave of intense Russian drone and missile attacks across Ukraine has killed at least six people, including two children, and left 21 others injured, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday. The overnight bombardment, he added, showed that Moscow still faced insufficient pressure to end its prolonged war.
The fresh escalation came just hours after US President Donald Trump announced the postponement of his planned Budapest summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying he did not want a “wasted meeting.” Both Trump and European leaders have called for a ceasefire along existing front lines — a proposal the Kremlin has firmly rejected.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s military confirmed a missile strike on a Russian chemical plant in the Bryansk region, near the border, claiming it as a “successful hit” using UK-supplied Storm Shadow missiles. The targeted facility reportedly manufactures gunpowder, explosives, and rocket fuel components used in Russia’s ongoing attacks on Ukrainian cities.
Zelensky, who was due to visit Swedish defence contractor Saab, recently returned from talks in the US where he failed to secure Tomahawk long-range missiles. He warned that the delay in Western arms deliveries had emboldened Moscow:
“As soon as the issue of long-range missiles became distant for Ukraine, Russia became less interested in diplomacy.”
The Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, endured its first major air assault since late September, with drones and missiles raining down through the night. A couple in their 60s died when a drone struck their apartment block, while four others — including a six-month-old baby and a 12-year-old girl — were killed in surrounding areas of the Kyiv region.
Air raid sirens and explosions echoed through the city for hours as ballistic missile alerts remained in effect. By dawn, rescue workers were battling fires in residential neighborhoods, and emergency power cuts were enforced nationwide as energy infrastructure once again became a key target.
Inna Sovsun, a member of Ukraine’s parliament, told the BBC that many residents were left without electricity or water:
“The air raids lasted all night, and it’s clear the attacks were aimed at the power grid. For the majority, like myself, it means no electricity and no water.”
The renewed strikes mark a grim reminder that despite talk of diplomacy, Russia’s war machine shows no sign of slowing, leaving Ukraine’s civilians once again bearing the brunt of the conflict.
