BBC Photo: Russian strikes on Kyiv this week have injured dozens of people

Source: BBC News

DST News: Three people were killed and at least 32 others injured in a series of overnight Russian airstrikes on Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said, as Moscow intensifies attacks on cities and energy facilities ahead of winter.

Kyiv’s mayor Vitali Klitschko said two high-rise residential buildings were struck during the bombardment, leaving several floors gutted by fire. Among the wounded were six children, he confirmed on Telegram.

Officials reported that one of the fatalities occurred when a drone hit a nine-storey apartment block in Kyiv’s Desnianskyi district, north-west of the city. At least 24 people were injured in that single attack, and several nearby buildings also sustained heavy damage.

Seven of the injured, including two children, remain in hospital, authorities said.

Images from the scene showed flames consuming vehicles and apartments, with thick smoke billowing into the night sky as firefighters battled the blaze.

The strikes are part of a renewed Russian campaign targeting civilian and energy infrastructure, which Ukrainian officials say has seen nearly 1,200 drones launched in the past week alone.

Meanwhile, in Russia, Moscow’s mayor Sergei Sobyanin said air defences had destroyed two drones heading toward the capital on Sunday. No casualties were reported.

The attacks come as the war grinds through its third year, with Russia maintaining control over roughly one-fifth of Ukraine, including the Crimean Peninsula, annexed in 2014. Fighting on the ground remains largely stalemated, though Ukraine continues to strike Russian oil depots and weapons factories in a bid to weaken Moscow’s war machine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has again appealed to Western allies for long-range weapons, but recent meetings at the White House and EU summit ended without new commitments.

In Washington, US President Donald Trump announced fresh sanctions on Russia’s largest oil companies — the first of his current term — while the EU imposed similar measures. Trump, however, said a planned meeting with Vladimir Putin in Budapest was postponed, citing a lack of progress toward peace.

“Talks with Putin don’t go anywhere,” Trump said en route to Asia, describing recent developments as “disappointing.”

Despite diplomatic stagnation, US and Russian envoys met in Washington over the weekend. Russian representative Kirill Dmitriev told CNN that all parties were “reasonably close to a diplomatic solution,” noting that Zelensky’s willingness to freeze fighting along current front lines was “a big step forward.”

Still, Moscow insists that Ukraine must withdraw entirely from the Donbas region, a demand Kyiv continues to reject.

As the prospect of peace remains uncertain, Ukraine braces for a long, harsh winter under fire. With civilian casualties rising and energy grids under threat, Kyiv’s resilience will once again be tested in the face of Russia’s unrelenting assault.