Video: 9 Dead In Ukraine As Russia Launches One Of Biggest Airstrikes On Kyiv

NDTV

25-05-2025

Kyiv:
Russia has launched one of the biggest aerial attacks on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv since the start of the war, using missiles and drones, hours after the two sides began exchanging hundreds of prisoners of war in a deal seen as the first step towards a ceasefire. Russian strikes killed at least nine people in Ukraine overnight on Sunday, with four deaths in the Kyiv region, Ukrainian officials said.
Russian troops, who are advancing slowly on the eastern front in Ukraine, have captured two settlements in Donetsk region as well as one in Ukraine's northern region of Sumy, the Russian Defence Ministry said on Saturday. Since their failed advance on Kyiv in the first weeks of the war, Russian forces have been focusing on capturing the Donbas in the east, made up of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
Ukrainian forces likely struck Russia's Migalovo Airbase tonight, with multiple explosions spotted in the area.
The base is home to a number of Russian heavy transport aircraft. pic.twitter.com/70nE1A4m6o
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) May 25, 2025
On Saturday, Russia launched 14 ballistic missiles and 250 drones at Ukraine, although Ukrainian forces shot down six missiles and stopped most of the drones before they reached Kyiv.
🇺🇦🇷🇺 DEATH FROM ABOVE: RUSSIA STRIKES UKRAINE AGAIN
For the second night in a row, skies over Ukraine lit up—not with fireworks, but with drones and missiles.
Kyiv woke up to flames and broken glass after a Russian drone slammed into a five-story apartment building, injuring… https://t.co/lic1ZtUfla pic.twitter.com/vxTafqKs8B
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 25, 2025
Four people were reported dead in the western Khmelnytskyi region, four in the Kyiv region -- which came under attack for the second night running -- and one in Mykolaiv in the south.
Another night of Russian terror across Ukraine.
Missiles and drones struck Kyiv, the Kyiv region, Mykolaiv, Khmelnytskyi, Chernihiv, and more.
Civilians killed. Homes destroyed. Families pulled from the rubble.
This is not war. It's terrorism. And it must end.
Russia… pic.twitter.com/FMD0pikmkn
— Anna K 🇺🇦 (@AnnaKozyarska) May 25, 2025
Tymur Tkachenko, the head of the city's military administration, said that some of the drones over Kyiv and the surrounding area have already been dealt with. But the new ones are still entering the capital, Kyiv. Overnight attacks were also reported in the Kherson region.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said it was a "difficult night for all of Ukraine" and called for more sanctions on Moscow to achieve a ceasefire. But he also said he expected officials to press on with a prisoner swap agreed during talks last week in Istanbul.
The latest offensive comes as the two sides pursue their biggest prisoner swap since Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
On Saturday, 307 Russian prisoners of war were exchanged for the same number of Ukrainian soldiers, according to announcements in Kyiv and Moscow.
Both sides received 390 people in the first stage on Friday and are expected to exchange 1,000 each in total.
Russia has signalled it will send Ukraine its terms for a peace settlement after the exchange, without saying what those terms would be.
Meanwhile, Russia has also accused Ukraine of targeting it with 788 drones and missiles since Tuesday. In Moscow, restrictions were imposed on at least four airports, including the main hub Sheremetyevo, the Russian civilian aviation authority said. Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said 12 drones flying towards the Russian capital had been intercepted.