Latest news with #UkrainianStateEmergencyService
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia launches one of war's largest air attacks days after Ukraine's bomber raid
Russia launched a barrage of drones and ballistic missiles across broad swaths of Ukraine early Friday, killing at least six people and injuring dozens of others, days after Kyiv launched a daring raid on Moscow's fleet of strategic bombers. For residents of Kyiv, the night's soundtrack was familiar: the shrieking whir of drones, air raid sirens and large explosions overhead – whether from air defenses successfully downing missiles, or projectiles puncturing the capital. Three firefighters were killed in Kyiv, two civilians were killed in Lutsk, and another person was killed in Chernihiv, according to the Ukrainian State Emergency Service. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had used more than 400 drones and 40 missiles in the overnight attack, putting it among the war's largest. He said Moscow's attack injured 80 and targeted 'almost all' of Ukraine, listing nine regions, from Lviv in the west to Sumy in the northeast. Although Russia has pummeled Ukraine almost daily over three years of full-scale war, Ukrainians had been bracing for retaliation since Sunday, when Kyiv launched an audacious operation that struck more than a third of Russia's strategic cruise missile carriers. In a call with his US counterpart Donald Trump on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Moscow would have to respond to Kyiv's assault. Speaking aboard Air Force One on Friday, Trump told reporters Ukraine 'gave Putin a reason to go in and bomb the hell out of them last night.' Russia's Ministry of Defense said its strikes were in response to what it called Kyiv's 'terrorist acts.' It was not immediately clear if the attack was the extent of Russia's pledged retaliation, or if Putin intends to escalate further. After the embarrassment of Kyiv's operation, there was a chorus of bellicose calls from pro-Kremlin pundits for a severe – potentially nuclear – response. Although Ukrainians had been buoyed last weekend by the news of Kyiv's successful operation, many were wary of how Russia might strike back. But after Friday's strikes, Kyiv residents told CNN they supported Ukraine's strikes against the aircraft Moscow has used to bomb Ukraine for more than three years. 'It didn't break us at all. The morale is as high as it was. We strongly believe in our armed forces,' said Olha, a 39-year-old from the capital who did not wish to give her last name. She said the apparent 'retaliation' from Russia was not so different to countless other nights of the war. 'Maybe (this was the retaliation), but maybe the retaliation is yet to come. Either way, it doesn't change our attitude towards the enemy or towards our country.' Meanwhile, Ukraine's general staff on Friday said it launched overnight strikes on two Russian airfields, where it said Moscow had concentrated many of the aircraft that had not been damaged in Kyiv's 'Spiderweb' operation last weekend. Ukraine stressed that the operation, which blindsided the Kremlin, had targeted the planes that Russia uses to launch missile strikes on Ukrainian cities and kill civilians. After Russia's large-scale attack Friday, Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Moscow had 'responded' to its destroyed aircraft by once again 'attacking civilians in Ukraine.' As daylight broke, images from Kyiv showed flames rising over apartment buildings and firefighting crews at work, with residents picking through the debris of damaged apartments. Several cars parked in the streets below were covered with shards of glass and slabs of masonry torn from the walls of residential buildings. Ukraine's air force said Russia's barrage comprised 407 drones, six ballistic missiles, 38 cruise missiles and an anti-radar missile. Of those 452 projectiles, the air force said it had downed 406, including 32 of the cruise missiles and four of the ballistic missiles. The other two ballistic missiles did not reach their targets, it added. The strikes also hit Chernihiv, near the border with Belarus, which was rocked by 14 explosions from drones and ballistic missiles, including cruise missiles and Iskander-M missiles, local officials said. Five others were wounded in strikes in the northwestern city of Lutsk, near the border with Poland. Footage geolocated by CNN showed at least four missiles slamming into the city, kicking up fiery explosions on impact. The Russian Ministry of Defense said it had also intercepted and destroyed 174 Ukrainian drones from Thursday evening to early Friday morning and had destroyed three Ukrainian Neptune-MD guided missiles over the Black Sea. All week, Ukrainians have been bracing for Russia's retaliation to last weekend's drone attack, which struck 34% of Moscow's nuclear-capable bombers stationed at airfields as far away as Siberia. On Tuesday, Ukraine also launched an attack on the Kerch Bridge, the only direct connection point between Russia and the annexed Crimean Peninsula, with 1,100 kilograms of explosives that had been planted underwater. After Trump's call with Putin on Wednesday, the US president said his Russian counterpart had told him that Moscow would have to respond to Ukraine's assaults. Trump's account of the call gave no indication that he had urged Putin to temper his response, to the dismay of many in Ukraine. 'When Putin mentioned he is going to avenge or deliver a new strike against Ukraine, we know what it means. It's about civilians,' Ukrainian lawmaker Oleksandr Merezhko told CNN earlier this week. 'And President Trump didn't say, 'Vladimir, stop.'' Despite Trump's support for recent peace talks in Istanbul between Ukraine and Russia, on Thursday he signaled that he may be adopting a more hands-off approach, likening the war to a brawl between children. 'Sometimes you see two young children fighting like crazy,' Trump said in the Oval Office, while German Chancellor Friedrich Merz looked on silently. 'They hate each other, and they're fighting in a park, and you try and pull them apart. They don't want to be pulled. Sometimes you're better off letting them fight for a while and then pulling them apart.'
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Russia launches ‘largest attack' yet on Ukraine, fires 400 drones, 40 missiles
Russia launched a massive attack on Ukraine, firing over 400 drones and 40 missiles across the country, after Kyiv had carried out Operation Spiderweb targeting the country's strategic cruise missile carriers. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky stated in a post on X on Saturday, 'Today, rescue and emergency operations continued all day across various regions and cities of our country. Over 400 drones, more than 40 missiles were launched by the Russians. 80 people were injured, and some may still be under the debris.' Also Read: 'What's there to talk about?': Putin on Zelensky's call for direct meeting He added, 'Unfortunately, not everyone in the world condemns such attacks. This is exactly what Putin exploits. He is buying himself time to keep waging war.' Watch: Russia takes revenge, hits Ukraine's north & south in back-to-back blows, wrecks Chernihiv & Odesa Three firefighters were killed in Kyiv, two civilians were killed in Lutsk, and another person was killed in Chernihiv, with a death toll of at least six people in total and several injured, according to the Ukrainian State Emergency Service, as per CNN. Russia's latest series of military offensives are the largest attack launched on Ukraine in the three-year-long war between the countries. The attack targeted almost all Ukraine, with nine regions affected, including Kyiv, Lviv, and Sumy. Zelensky said regarding the attack, 'The Russians constantly try to drive wedges into the unity of the world in order to prevent stronger pressure for their war. We must clearly see the task at hand. Diplomacy must work, security guarantees must be ensured, and peace must be established. For that, initial steps are needed, particularly a ceasefire. Pressure must be applied on Russia to make that happen and to stop the attacks.' Russia's defence ministry said its strikes were in response to Kyiv's 'terrorist acts,' referring to Operation Spiderweb carried out last week, where a third of Russia's cruise missile carriers were hit by Ukrainian forces. (with inputs from ANI)
Mint
2 days ago
- Politics
- Mint
Russia unleashes 400 drones, 40 missiles across Ukraine, leaving 6 dead, 80 injured
Days after Ukraine hit more than a third of multiple nuclear-capable bombers in Russia, Moscow launched a scathing attack on almost all of Ukraine, firing over 400 drones and 40 missiles. At least nine regions were affected with the missiles and drone attacks. They include Kyiv, Lviv, and Sumy. Russia's Ministry of Defence said its strikes were in response to what it called Kyiv's 'terrorist acts.' Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described it as one of the largest attacks since the war began. Three firefighters were killed in Kyiv, two civilians were killed in Lutsk, and another person was killed in Chernihiv, according to the Ukrainian State Emergency Service. Also Read | Russia rebuffs Donald Trump's 'fighting children' comment, says Ukraine war an 'existential issue' After the attack, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had used more than 400 drones and 40 missiles in the overnight attack, making it among the war's largest. He said Moscow's attack injured 80 and targeted "almost all" of Ukraine, listing nine regions, from Lviv in the west to Sumy in the northeast. During a phone call with his US counterpart Donald Trump on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Moscow would be forced to respond to Kyiv's attack. It remained unclear whether the attack marked the full extent of Russia's promised retaliation or if President Putin plans to escalate further. Although Ukrainians had been buoyed last weekend by the news of Kyiv's successful operation, many were wary of how Russia might strike back. But after Friday's strikes, Kyiv residents told CNN they supported Ukraine's strikes against the aircraft Moscow has used to bomb Ukraine for more than three years. 'It didn't break us at all. The morale is as high as it was. We strongly believe in our armed forces,' said Olha, a 39-year-old from the capital who did not wish to give her last name.
New York Post
18-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Russia launches war's largest drone attack after peace talks, Ukraine says
The largest known Russian drone attack since full-scale war began in 2022 killed a woman in the Kyiv region and injured at least three people, Ukrainian authorities said early on Sunday, as Moscow stepped up strikes following peace talks on Friday Russia launched 273 drones by 8 a.m., targeting chiefly the central Kyiv region and the Dnipropetrovsk and Donetsk regions in the country's east, Ukraine's air force said. Based on data provided by the air force, this was Russia's largest drone attack on Ukraine of the war. On the eve of the third anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 23, Moscow launched a then-record 267 drones. Advertisement 5 Destroyed cars are parked near a building after Russian drone strikes on the Kyiv region in Ukraine on May 18, 2025. Ukrainian State Emergency Service/AFP via Getty Images The first direct talks in three years between Russia and Ukraine on Friday failed to broker the temporary ceasefire Kyiv and its allies have been urging. The 100 minutes of talks in Istanbul yielded an agreement to trade 1,000 prisoners of war on each side. Advertisement US President Donald Trump said he would speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday. The sustained overnight Russian drone attack on Sunday killed a 28-year-old woman in the capital region and injured at least three people, including a 4-year-old child, Ukrainian authorities said. 'Unfortunately, as a result of the enemy attack in the Obukhiv district, a woman died from her injuries,' Mykola Kalashnik, governor of the Kyiv region, posted on Telegram. 5 A 22-year-old Ukrainian resident walks through the rubble of his home damaged by a Russian drone strike. REUTERS Advertisement 5 A home is heavily damaged in the aftermath of Russia's attack on the Kyiv Region on May 18, 2025. REUTERS Kyiv and the region around it as well as the eastern part of Ukraine were under raid warnings for nine straight hours overnight before they were called off at around 9 a.m. Air defense units were engaged several times trying to repel attacks, the military said on Telegram. 'It's been a tough night. The Russians have always used war and attacks to intimidate everyone in negotiations,' Andriy Kovalenko, head of Ukraine's Centre for Countering Disinformation, said on Telegram about Sunday's attack. Advertisement Air defense units destroyed 88 of the drones overnight. The attack also included 128 simulator drones that were lost along the way without hitting anything, Ukraine's air force said in a statement on Telegram. 5 A firefighter battles a fire at a private enterprise outside of Kyiv, Ukraine. REUTERS On Saturday, a Russian drone attack killed nine civilians after hitting a shuttle bus in the Sumy region in northeastern Ukraine, Kyiv said. Zelensky called the attack 'deliberate' and urged stronger sanctions on Moscow, which said it had attacked a military facility. All of those injured in the Obukhiv district just south of Kyiv city were hospitalized, Kalashnik said. Several residential buildings were damaged in the area, he added. In the city of Kyiv, fragments of a destroyed drone damaged the roof of a non-residential building, the city's military administration said on Telegram. There were no reports of injuries, it added. 5 Firefighters stand in front of burned-down structures after the Russian drone attack. REUTERS Advertisement Reuters witnesses in and around Kyiv heard blasts that sounded like air defense units in operation. There was no immediate comment from Russia. Both sides deny targeting civilians in the war, but thousands have been killed in the conflict, the vast majority of them Ukrainian.
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- Yahoo
Firefighters battle flames in Kyiv as emergency service says city hit by Russian drone attack
At least 11 people were injured in Kyiv on Sunday following an overnight Russian drone attack, the Ukrainian State Emergency Service said.
