A MASSIVE overnight Russian missile and drone assault tore through Ukraine’s capital early Sunday, leaving residential blocks engulfed in flames, dozens wounded and emergency crews scrambling through shattered neighbourhoods amid renewed fears over the possible deployment of Moscow’s hypersonic Oreshnik missile.
Explosions echoed across Kyiv shortly after 1am as air raid sirens blared throughout the city, sending frightened residents rushing into underground metro stations and bomb shelters.
The attack damaged more than 40 locations across the capital, including homes, offices, schools, shops and transport infrastructure, according to Ukrainian officials.
Reuters reported on Sunday Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko saying at least one person was believed killed after a nine-storey residential building in the Shevchenko district suffered a direct strike.
Emergency crews battled fires and searched for survivors trapped beneath debris through the early hours of the morning.
Klitschko said 21 people were injured, with 13 hospitalised and three reported in serious condition.
In one of the most dramatic incidents, several civilians became trapped inside a school air raid shelter after debris from a strike blocked the entrance.
Authorities also reported that additional people were feared trapped inside a shelter located beneath a nearby business centre.
As daylight broke over Kyiv, thick black smoke drifted above the skyline while firefighters sprayed water onto smouldering apartment blocks and rescue teams evacuated the wounded from collapsed structures.
Images from the scene showed the front façade of a five-storey residential building in Shevchenko completely torn away by the blast.
Ukraine’s air force had earlier warned that Russia could launch an Oreshnik ballistic missile during the assault, although officials later declined to confirm whether the weapon had actually been used.
The Oreshnik missile has become a growing source of concern for Kyiv and its Western allies after Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed the weapon was effectively impossible to intercept because it travels at more than 10 times the speed of sound.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had warned on Saturday that intelligence gathered by Ukraine, the United States and European partners suggested Russia was preparing another major strike involving the missile system.
The latest barrage came after Putin reportedly ordered military planners to prepare retaliatory options following allegations that Ukraine targeted a student dormitory in Russian-occupied Luhansk with drones on Friday.
Ukraine denied responsibility for striking civilians and said its forces had instead targeted a Russian drone command facility.
Residents sheltering underground described scenes of panic and fear as explosions thundered across the city for hours.
“It was terrifying, scary,” said 62-year-old Kyiv resident Nataliia Zvarych, who sought refuge in a metro station overnight.
“We have been sitting here for more than three hours now, listening to the explosions up there,” she said.
The renewed escalation has heightened regional tensions, with neighbouring Poland activating military aircraft during the attack as a precautionary measure.
Polish authorities later confirmed that no violations of national airspace had been detected.
The strike marks one of the deadliest attacks on Kyiv in recent weeks and underscores mounting fears of a broader escalation as Russia intensifies its long-range bombardment campaign against Ukrainian cities. - May 24, 2026
