At least 13 people, including children, have been killed in a large Russian missile and drone attack across Ukraine, according to Ukrainian officials. Strikes hit Kyiv, Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk, Poltava and the western city of Lviv, hours after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that Russia was preparing a “massive” assault.
Family home destroyed in Kryvyi Rih
Six people were killed when an Iskander-M ballistic missile struck a private home near Kryvyi Rih, Zelenskyy’s home city in central Ukraine. Local authorities said the victims included two girls aged five and 12 and four adults from a large family.
Eight other people were injured in the attack. Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the city’s defence council, said the missile had been launched from Russia’s Voronezh region and warned that the number of casualties could rise as emergency workers continued searching through the wreckage.
Deaths reported across central Ukraine
One person was killed and two others were injured in Kyiv, where explosions were heard across the capital and fires broke out at several non-residential sites. Mayor Vitali Klitschko urged residents to remain in shelters as ballistic missiles approached the city and warned that further attacks remained possible.
Ukrainian authorities reported six additional deaths, including two children, elsewhere in the Dnipropetrovsk and Poltava regions. Rescue services worked through damaged buildings while air-raid alerts remained active across much of the country.
Apartment buildings hit in Lviv
The attack extended to Lviv in western Ukraine, close to the Polish border. Officials said two apartment buildings were damaged and at least 26 people were injured. Emergency workers attempted to reach residents believed to be trapped beneath rubble.
The geographical spread of the strikes demonstrated Russia’s continuing ability to attack targets far from the eastern and southern front lines. Ukrainian reporting indicated that dozens of ballistic and cruise missiles, accompanied by hundreds of drones, were directed towards different parts of the country.
Zelenskyy warned hours before attack
Late on Wednesday, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian intelligence had detected preparations for a major Russian assault. He called on people throughout the country to follow air-raid warnings and seek shelter.
After the strikes, the Ukrainian president again appealed to international partners for additional air-defence missiles. Ukraine depends heavily on systems such as the American-made Patriot to intercept ballistic missiles, but officials have repeatedly warned that supplies of interceptor missiles remain insufficient.
Zelenskyy returned from the United States shortly before the attack, saying President Donald Trump had agreed to provide Ukraine with licences connected to Patriot missile production.
Poland places defences on alert
Poland scrambled fighter aircraft and activated ground-based air-defence and radar systems as the Russian attack approached its border. Polish authorities later discovered a crater and debris from an unidentified object near Tarnawa-Kolonia in Lublin province.
Russia’s defence ministry said its forces had attacked military facilities across Ukraine, including targets in Kyiv, Lviv and Dnipropetrovsk. Moscow and Kyiv both deny deliberately targeting civilians, and some battlefield claims could not be independently verified.
The latest assault nevertheless caused extensive damage to residential areas and again placed Ukrainian families, emergency workers and air-defence crews under intense pressure. It also reinforced Kyiv’s argument that delays in supplying defensive missiles carry an immediate human cost.
Newshub Editorial in Europe – 30 July 2026
Ask NF GPT
If you have an account with ChatGPT you get deeper explanations,
background and context related to what you are reading.
Recent Comments