Kiev, Ukraine
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The death toll from Russia’s heavy bombardment on the Ukrainian capital rose to 31, marking the deadliest single attack on Kiev in a year, Ukrainian officials said on Friday.
The majority were killed in one strike on an apartment block.
Rescue personnel have now recovered at least 28 bodies from the destroyed apartment, including five children, the state Emergency Services (SES) told CNN. At least 159 people were injured in the explosion.
“This is the most number of children injured in Kiev overnight, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion,” said Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko.
Over 100 rescuers scrambled into the scene in Kiev’s western Svyatsinsky district, working all night, removing more than 2,000 tons of tile rub while searching for survivors in ongoing operations.
According to Tymur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv’s military junta, the building was one of dozens of sites in the Ukrainian capital, which were attacked by Russian missiles and drones in an overnight attack. He described the strike as a “direct hit” in the nine-story apartment building, and it hit just before 5am on Thursday (10pm on Wednesday).
“I was just asleep. I woke up on the rooftop rub downstairs,” Veronika, a survivor of the attack, told Reuters News from the hospital where she was nursing her broken leg. The 23-year-old was blown away from the ninth floor of her apartment building.
“Once again, this sleazy strike by Russia shows the need for increased pressure on Moscow and additional sanctions,” Ukrainian President Voldimia Zelensky said on Friday. “No matter how effective the Kremlin denied, sanctions must work and be strengthened.”
Zelensky said, “In July alone, Russia used more than 5,100 glide bombs, more than 3,800 ‘shahed’ (drones), and nearly 260 missiles of various types against Ukraine. ” he added.
Russia also attacked Donetsk and Kharkiv regions overnight on Thursday. A strike on a five-storey block of Kramaturk, a city in the Donetsk region that partially destroyed the building, killed three people.
More strikes were then carried out in Ukraine overnight until Friday, killing at least three civilians and 27 injured.
This week, US President Donald Trump cited the murder of Ukrainian civilians in Moscow as Russian President Vladimir Putin shortened the windows to negotiate a ceasefire or face greater sanctions.
Meanwhile, Putin said on Friday that Russian troops are moving forward along all Ukrainian contacts.
The Russian leader said he hopes peace talks between Russia and Ukraine continue, but he reiterated that the Kremlin’s biggest war goals remain unchanged.
Zelensky on Friday reaffirmed his willingness to sit with Putin for peace negotiations and called for dialogue beyond the “exchange of statements and technical level meetings.”
“We have heard statements coming out of Russia. If these are the signals of a true will to end the war with dignity and establish truly lasting peace, and we reaffirm that Ukraine is ready to meet again at the leadership level, rather than simply trying to buy more time for the war or delay sanctions.
The Kremlin’s air attacks on Ukrainian population centres have leaned heavily towards a flock of cheaply manufactured drones aimed at overpowering Ukraine’s air defense this year.
Drone and missile attacks are released almost every night, with bigger salvos occurring more regularly. According to a new analysis from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington, DC-based think tank, the interval between large-scale salvo attacks ranged from about a month to just two days.
Meanwhile, the number of munitions Russia uses in these massive attacks has increased from around 100 ammunition a few years ago to nearly 300 ammunition in 2025, CSIS analysis found.
