At least 13 people were killed and more than 90 others injured after Russia launched a massive overnight assault on Kyiv using ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and attack drones, Ukrainian officials said. The strike was described by Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko as the largest attack on the Ukrainian capital since the full-scale war began in 2022.

According to Mayor Klitschko, the bombardment caused widespread destruction across the city, with at least three dozen locations sustaining damage. A direct missile strike partially collapsed six floors of a nine-story residential building, while the roof of a hotel on Shevchenko Boulevard caught fire. Emergency rescue teams continued searching through the rubble for survivors and victims.

The head of Kyiv's military administration, Tymur Tkachenko, confirmed that numerous residential areas and civilian infrastructure were hit during the attack. Among the more than 90 injured were at least two children.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the overnight assault extended beyond Kyiv, with strikes also reported in the Kharkiv, Kyiv, Sumy, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, and Cherkasy regions. Five people, including a child, were wounded in the Kharkiv region, while additional civilians were injured in the Kyiv region.

Following the attacks, Zelenskyy renewed Ukraine's appeal for stronger air-defense capabilities, particularly additional Patriot missile systems. He also called on the United States to approve further cooperation, including licensing arrangements for Patriot systems, describing such support as essential to protecting civilians and preventing future large-scale attacks.

The Ukrainian president reportedly shortened a visit to Dublin after intelligence assessments warned of an impending major Russian strike.

Russia said the missile and drone barrage was carried out in retaliation for recent Ukrainian drone attacks targeting Moscow. Earlier this month, Ukraine struck a major oil refinery in the Moscow region during one of its largest drone operations against the Russian capital since the war began.

As the conflict evolves, Ukraine has significantly expanded its long-range drone capabilities, enabling strikes deep inside Russian territory. According to a new study by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), drones have become the dominant weapon on the battlefield, with some estimates suggesting they account for more than 90 percent of Russian battlefield casualties.

The CSIS report estimates that between February 2022 and June 2026, Russian forces suffered approximately 1.4 million battlefield casualties—including those killed, wounded, or missing—with fatalities estimated between 400,000 and 450,000. Ukrainian forces are estimated to have sustained between 525,000 and 625,000 casualties, including between 125,000 and 150,000 deaths.

The report concludes that more than two million Russian and Ukrainian military personnel have been killed, wounded, or gone missing since the start of the full-scale invasion, underscoring the immense human cost of Europe's largest armed conflict since the Second World War.