Kyiv endured another devastating wave of Russian strikes on Friday, as a volley of missiles tore through residential areas, leaving six people dead in a single apartment building. President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the assault as a “heinous” attempt to instill fear among civilians.
Hours later, a Russian drone attack struck a marketplace in southern Ukraine, killing two more people. Ukraine retaliated with strikes inside Russian territory, where officials reported a blaze at a major Black Sea oil refinery.
With winter tightening its grip and repeated assaults on the nation’s power grid, the attack marked one of the most extensive on Kyiv since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022. Several parts of the capital were plunged into darkness Friday night as emergency outages spread.
Authorities said a hospital, businesses, and office buildings were hit, with at least 36 people wounded. Damage also extended to the embassy of Azerbaijan, prompting Baku to summon Moscow’s envoy in protest. In eastern Kyiv, AFP reporters witnessed soot-covered high-rises with shattered balconies and blown-out windows.
Resident Maria Kalchenko described the chaos as she escaped her burning home. “My hair caught fire and I started putting it out,” she said, recounting how she attempted to locate her dog before the wall beside her collapsed. “The doors were blown out, flames everywhere, the fire spreading, the neighbours screaming,” she told AFP.
Zelensky, preparing for diplomatic visits to Paris and Madrid next week, said the attack was meant to sow “terror,” calling it “a deliberately calculated attack aimed at causing maximum harm to people and civilian infrastructure.”
‘Contempt for humanity’
Moscow has intensified record-level waves of missile and drone barrages in recent months, targeting power stations, transport hubs, and densely populated areas. Tens of thousands have faced repeated blackouts as temperatures fall.
Germany condemned Friday’s assault as evidence of Moscow’s “contempt for humanity.” Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said it was “very evident and clear that (Russian President Vladimir) Putin aims to make winter as unbearable as possible for Ukraine, to destroy morale and break the resistance of the Ukrainian people.”
Throughout the night, AFP journalists saw Ukraine’s air-defence systems firing tracer rounds and intercepting incoming missiles. Burning fragments rained over Kyiv, while the sky flashed orange with explosions.
Ukraine’s air force reported downing 405 of 430 drones launched by Russia, along with 14 of 19 missiles.
‘More ballistic missiles’
A senior Ukrainian official, speaking anonymously, said Kyiv’s defences performed significantly better than during previous large-scale attacks. The official acknowledged earlier “certain issues with air defence,” but noted that this time “the air-defence systems worked well.”
They added that Russia has “started using significantly more ballistic missiles,” which are harder to intercept due to their velocity and flight path. “They combine ballistic and aeroballistic missiles with waves of drones. It is not easy to shoot down,” the official said.
Russia’s defence ministry confirmed what it called a “massive strike” using drones and hypersonic missiles targeting Ukrainian military and energy facilities. Moscow’s forces continue to advance slowly on the eastern front, with Ukraine acknowledging that hundreds of Russian troops have moved into the embattled city of Pokrovsk.
Western pressure
Despite sustained pressure from global leaders urging an end to hostilities, Russian President Vladimir Putin has reaffirmed that Ukraine must surrender additional eastern territory for any ceasefire to occur.
Ukraine, meanwhile, has accelerated its own long-range strikes on Russian energy infrastructure. Zelensky said Ukrainian forces deployed Neptune missiles overnight against strategic sites inside Russia.
Russian officials said debris from a Ukrainian drone struck the Novovoronezh nuclear power station on Thursday, briefly cutting it off from power. In the border region of Belgorod, the local governor reported that a Ukrainian drone attack on a civilian vehicle killed one person.
Moscow claimed its air-defence units destroyed more than 200 Ukrainian drones overnight, with 66 intercepted over Krasnodar and 45 over Saratov. Officials also reported a fire at a major refinery in Novorossiysk on the Black Sea and damage to a civilian vessel that left three people injured.
What You Should Know
Friday’s attacks underscore Russia’s growing reliance on large-scale winter strikes aimed at crippling Ukraine’s energy network and eroding civilian morale.
Kyiv faced one of its heaviest bombardments in years, with widespread damage and casualties. Ukraine’s air-defence systems performed more effectively than in earlier assaults, yet officials warned of Russia’s increasing use of ballistic and aeroballistic missiles, which are harder to intercept.
As both sides escalate long-range operations, from Ukrainian strikes on Russian energy sites to Moscow’s massive drone launches, the conflict is entering a harsher winter phase marked by intensified pressure, civilian risk, and hardened political positions.
