At least 28 people, including five children, have been killed and about 100 others injured after Russia launched a sweeping barrage of missiles and drones across Ukraine on Vladimir Putin’s 74th birthday.
The overnight assault on Wednesday struck Kyiv and several other regions, damaging residential buildings, energy facilities and industrial infrastructure, Ukrainian officials said. The heaviest casualties were reported in the northern city of Pryluky, where a Russian missile destroyed part of a five-storey apartment building.
At least 20 people were killed in Pryluky, including five children, according to Ukrainian officials. Dozens of others were injured as emergency crews searched the rubble for survivors.
The nationwide death toll stood at 28 by Wednesday, according to Ukraine’s interior minister, while President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said about 100 people had been injured. The figures were revised upward during the day as rescuers recovered more bodies.
The Wednesday attack coincided with Putin’s 74th birthday on October 7. Zelenskyy referred to the destruction in Pryluky as a “birthday gift” to the Russian president, while condemning what he described as one of the most severe attacks of the war.
The deadliest strike hit Pryluky in Ukraine’s Chernihiv region, where a Russian cruise missile struck a five-storey residential building.
The impact tore through the apartment block, leaving sections of the building collapsed and residents trapped beneath the rubble. Five children were among those killed.
Three of the children were just one year old, while another was eight, according to Zelenskyy. Emergency workers continued searching the wreckage as the death toll rose during the day.
The attack also caused extensive damage to surrounding buildings and infrastructure.
Kyiv was among the main targets of the overnight barrage. At least four people were killed in the capital, while others were injured by drone strikes and falling debris.
Mayor Vitali Klitschko said residential and other buildings were damaged and that the attacks disrupted electricity supplies. Power losses also affected some water-pumping stations, causing interruptions to the water supply in parts of the city.
Other strikes were reported in Dnipro, Kremenchuk, Oleksandriya and other parts of Ukraine.
In Kremenchuk, two people were killed and dozens injured after missile strikes damaged residential buildings. Two more people were killed in Oleksandriya, according to Ukrainian officials.
Ukraine reports large-scale missile and drone attack
Ukraine’s Air Force said Russia launched a combination of cruise and ballistic missiles and attack drones during the overnight assault.
Earlier reports said Russia fired 130 drones and 48 cruise missiles, alongside an unspecified number of ballistic missiles. Ukrainian air defences said they intercepted or suppressed a large number of the incoming weapons, although missiles and drones still struck targets in at least several regions.
Zelenskyy said energy infrastructure was among Russia’s key targets.
“The Russians wanted to strike painfully and demonstratively,” Zelenskyy said.
The attacks damaged energy facilities as well as residential and industrial sites, Ukrainian authorities said.
Moscow says it targeted military-industrial facilities
Russia’s Defence Ministry confirmed that its forces had carried out what it called a “massive strike” against Ukraine.
The ministry said its forces used high-precision weapons launched from land, sea and air, along with drones. It claimed the strikes targeted military-industrial facilities involved in producing and storing missiles and drones, as well as port and ship-repair infrastructure in the Odesa region.
Moscow did not acknowledge the civilian casualties reported by Ukrainian authorities.
Ukraine says it struck targets inside Russia
Ukraine also reported strikes against Russian targets.
Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces had attacked several Russian facilities over the previous 24 hours, including oil and military-related infrastructure in the Perm, Samara and Astrakhan regions.
He said the targets were connected to Russia’s ability to finance and sustain its war effort.
The exchange of long-range strikes comes as Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities have intensified, with Kyiv facing repeated assaults on energy, transport and other infrastructure ahead of winter.
The latest escalation has also raised concerns about the safety of commercial shipping in the Black Sea.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed the issue with Putin and reiterated Ankara’s offer to help facilitate direct talks between Russia and Ukraine, according to the Turkish presidency.
Erdogan also stressed the importance of maintaining safe navigation in the Black Sea.
The discussion followed attacks on commercial vessels earlier in the week. Two ships were hit by drones, with one catching fire and another sinking off the Bulgarian coast. Bulgarian authorities subsequently ended search operations after reporting that no survivors had been found.
The attacks add to growing concerns over the risks facing commercial shipping as the Russia-Ukraine war increasingly extends into the Black Sea.
