Russia bombed Ukrainian Capital with drones and rockets early Thursday, including a rare strike in the city center, killing at least 15 people and wounding 48, local authorities said.
It was the first major Russian attack on Kiev in the weeks, because the peace efforts were guided by the United States to end the three-year war that struggled to attract. Russia launched 598 strikes of drones and 31 rockets of different species throughout the country, according to Ukrainian air forces, making it one of the largest air attacks of war.
Among the dead were four children between 2 and 17 years old, said Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kiev City Administration. Numbers are expected to increase. Rescue teams were on the spot to pull people trapped under the ruins.
“Russia chooses ballistics instead of a negotiating table,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a post on X after the attack. “We expect the answer of everyone in the world who have called for peace, but now they are silent, not occupying principled positions.”
The Russian Ministry of Defense announced that the strike against military air bases and a company “within the Ukraine Military-Industrial Complex” using long-term weapons, including Kinzhal rockets.
“All certain items are affected,” the statement said.
The Ministry also said that 102 Ukrainian drones had broken overnight, mainly in the southwest of the country. The attack of drones caused flames at the Nafta Afipsky Refinery in the Krasnodar region, local officials said, while another fire was reported in the Novokuibishevsk region in the Samara region.
Ukrainian unmanned flights have hit refineries and other oil infrastructure in an attempt to weaken the Russian war economy in recent times, causing gas stations in some Russian regions to run dry and prices are increasing.
Russia strikes the central Kyiv
Russia has launched decones, cruising rockets and ballistic rockets, Tkachenko said.
At least 20 locations in the seven districts of Kiev had influence. Nearly 100 buildings were damaged, including a downtown shopping center, and thousands of windows were broken, he said.
Ukrainian forces broke down and neutralized 563 drones and decorations and 26 rockets across the country, air forces said.
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Ukraine has increased domestic weapons production to fight the Russian invasion. Many weapons factories act hidden, with some built into civilian areas with superior air defense. Independent Russian attacks that claim to target the Ukrainian defense industry have killed many civilians.
Russian strikes hit the central part of Kiev, one of the few Russian attacks reached the heart of the Ukrainian capital from the beginning of the full invasion. The residents cleaned the broken glass and debris from damaged buildings.
Sophia Akylin said her home was damaged.
“It never happened before they had attacked so close,” the 21-year-old said. “Negotiations have not yet given anything, unfortunately, people suffer.”
EU Delegation Damage to Damage
The European Union delegation building in Kiev and the British Council building was also damaged. The staff was not harmed, said EU President Ursula von der Leyen.
The European Commission said it would call Russian envoy to the European Union as a result of the attack that damaged the diplomatic blend of the block in Kiev.
Kaja Kallas, the main diplomat of the European Union, said in a post on XU on Thursday that she would invite the Russian envoy to the 27-state block.
“No diplomatic mission should ever be a target. In response, we call a Russian envoy in Brussels,” Kallas wrote.
Following the EU building strike, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot posted a message on X calling for an end to the attacks.
“That must stop. We will increase the pressure to stop this massacre,” he wrote.
French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the latest attack in his own X mail.
″ 629 rockets and drones in one night in Ukraine: This is Russia’s desire for peace. Terror and Barbarism, “Macron wrote.
Bodies drawn from the ruins
The smoke broke out of the demolished column of a five -pole residential building in Darnytskyi County, which suffered a direct hit. The sharp stench of burning material hovered in the air while firefighters worked to contain flames.
Emergency respondents searched the survivors and pulled the bodies from destruction. The crowds of the inhabitants stood nearby waiting for the relatives to get out of the ruins, including a man who was waiting for information about his wife and son. The bodies in the black bags were placed on the side of the building.
At least 10 people are known to have been missing in the afternoon, according to the Ukraine Emergency Service.
It was not the first time the district was targeted, the neighborhood residents said.
Oleksandr Khilko arrived at the scene after the missile hit the apartment building where his sister lives. He heard the screams of people who were trapped under the ruins and pulled out three survivors, including boys.
“It’s inhuman, striking civilians,” he said, clothing covered with dust and tips of his fingers of black soot. “With every cell of my body, I want this war to end as soon as possible. I wait, but every time the air alarm sounds, I’m afraid.”
The Ukrainian national railway operator, an assembly, reported the damage to its infrastructure in the Vinnytsia and Kiyiv regions, causing delays and demanding that trains use alternative routes.
Diplomatic efforts paused
On Thursday, the first major combination of Russian mass unmanned attack and a rocket attack that attacked Kiyiv has been met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska earlier this month to talk about the end of the war in Ukraine.
While it seemed that the diplomatic pressure on the end of the war was given momentum shortly after that meeting, several details of the following steps appeared.
Western leaders accused Putin of dragging his feet in peace efforts and avoiding serious negotiations as the Russian troops move deeper into Ukraine. This week, the Ukrainian military leaders acknowledged that the Russian forces broke into the eighth region of Ukraine, trying to capture more soils.
Zelenskyy hopes that sharp American sanctions will cripple the Russian economy if Putin does not show seriousness regarding the end of the war. He repeated these requests after the attack on Thursday.
“All deadlines are already broken, dozens of opportunities for diplomacy destroyed,” Zelenskyy said.
Trump stood on Putin this week on an American proposal for direct peace negotiations with Zelenskyy. Trump said on Friday that he expects to decide on the following steps in two weeks if direct conversations are not scheduled.







