Dozens of Russian drones targeted the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv in a night-time attack that lasted eight hours, authorities said on Thursday, as Russia kept up its relentless pounding of Ukraine after almost 1,000 days of war.
Russian forces fired lone drones and swarms of drones that entered Ukrainian airspace from various directions and at a variety of altitudes, officials said, in an apparent attempt to stretch air defence systems and unnerve city residents.
Ukrainian air defences “neutralised” three dozen drones, but falling debris caused damage to a hospital and residential and office buildings in the capital, local authorities said, including a blaze on the 33rd floor of an apartment building.
A rescuer puts out a fire resulting from a Russian drone attack in Kyiv, Ukraine (Ukrainian Emergency Service/AP)
At least two people were reported injured.
Drone attacks on Kyiv have recently been occurring almost daily, with the night-time explosions and the continuous buzzing sound of drones keeping the city on edge.
Russia is deploying about 10 times more Iranian-made Shahed drones than it was this time last year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier this week.
Ukraine’s forces are struggling to match the might of Russia’s military, which is much bigger and better equipped.
Western support is crucial for Ukraine to sustain the costly war of attrition.
The uncertainty over how long that aid will continue has deepened, however, with the election of Donald Trump as the next president of the United States.
Russian servicemen take part in a combat training for assault units at an undisclosed location in Ukraine (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service/AP)
He has repeatedly taken issue with US aid to Ukraine.
Russia, meanwhile, is trying to grind down Ukraine’s appetite for the fight and sap the West’s support for Kyiv by drawing out the conflict.
The Russian barrages mostly involve Shahed drones.
They are suited to terrorising civilians, according to Andrii Kovalenko, head of the state Centre for Countering Disinformation.
Russia is aiming to save and stockpile its missiles, which are much more powerful than drones, Mr Kovalenko claimed on Thursday.
Russia has used missiles effectively in its campaign to knock out Ukraine’s power grid.
Also, the drone attacks gradually wear down Ukraine’s air defences, making it more vulnerable to future missile launches.
Power outages were reported in the Zhytomyr region, which borders Kyiv to the west, following a Russian attack there, according to the energy company Zhytomyroblenergo.
Another Russian drone attack injured one person in the southern city of Odesa, regional governor Oleh Kiper said, as drone debris damaged an 11-story residential building.