Kyiv assault sees Russia launch biggest drone attack on Ukraine since war began

Credit: AP A damaged kindergarten following a Russian drone attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, Nov. 25, 2023. Russia launched its most intense drone attack on Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion on Saturday morning, military officials said. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
A damaged kindergarten following the Russian drone attack on Kyiv. Credit: AP

Russia has targeted Kyiv in its most intense drone attack on Ukraine since the start of the invasion, military officials have said.

Around 75 Iranian-made Shahed drones were launched against Ukraine on Saturday morning, Ukrainian Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshcuk wrote on his Telegram channel.

According to Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko, 74 of the drones were destroyed by air defences, Ukraine's air force said, but at least five civilians were wounded in the assault, including an 11-year-old child.

Several buildings were damaged by falling debris from downed drones and in the city’s Solomiansky district, debris left a crater in the courtyard of a residential area.

People stand amid glass from broken windows of their apartment building following the attack. Credit: AP

The Russian assault on the city began at 4 am, continuing in waves for over six hours, and causing power outages in 77 residential buildings and 120 institutions, according to Serhii Popko, head of the Kyiv city administration.

Ukraine's Energy Ministry said 17,000 people were without power in the Kyiv region as a result of the attack, before it was restored in the early afternoon.

“Our soldiers shot down most of the drones. Unfortunately, not all,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram.

“But we continue to work to strengthen our air defence and shoot down more,” he said.

“Kyiv was the main target” of the attack, said Ukrainian Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk. Credit: AP

In addition to Kyiv, the Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv and Kirovohrad regions were also targeted.

Meanwhile, shelling killed one person and wounded three in the southern Kherson region, regional Gov Oleksandr Prokudin said on Saturday.

According to Prokudin, the region had been shelled 100 times over the previous 24 hours.

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