Russia launched nearly 700 drones and dozens of ballistic and cruise missiles at Ukrainian cities on Wednesday night in one of its largest aerial barrages of 2026. The attack stretched for hours, killing at least 16 people and wounding more than 100.
Why it matters: The scale of the strike signals that Russia is intensifying civilian targeting even as its ground offensive in Donetsk stalls. Each mass barrage tests Ukraine’s air defence reserves and Western willingness to replenish them.
The toll
Four people died in Kyiv, including a 12-year-old child. More than 50 others were wounded in the capital. In Odesa, nine people were killed and 23 injured. Three women died in the Dnipro region with around three dozen wounded. One person was killed in Zaporizhzhia.
Officials said the attack damaged 17 apartment buildings, 10 private homes, a hotel, an office centre, a car dealership, a petrol station, and a shopping mall in Kyiv alone.
Russian justification
Russia’s Defence Ministry said the operation was launched “in retaliation” for Ukrainian strikes deep inside Russia. Ukraine has used long-range drones and missiles to hit Russian oil refineries and military manufacturing sites in recent weeks.
International reaction
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the strikes “cannot be normalised” and called them war crimes. The attack came as the broader Russia-Ukraine ground campaign continues with no diplomatic progress toward a ceasefire.