Russian forces launched a major drone and missile attack on Kyiv overnight, killing 13 people and reminding Ukrainians that the war is, in fact, still on. Several neighborhoods were evacuated as strikes pummeled buildings across the city, just hours after President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that Russia was gearing up for a “massive” assault. Children were among the casualties, according to Tymur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, who noted that the enemy is “once again deliberately targeting residential areas and killing civilians.” Russia’s Ministry of Defence, for its part, claimed it was targeting energy facilities in response to recent Ukrainian strikes - because nothing says proportional response like bombing apartment buildings.

Our team in Kyiv heard loud explosions throughout the night. By 3:30 AM local time, we had counted 10 significant strikes, with one major fire in the city center and multiple other blazes in the distance. Tracer fire from air defense systems lit up the sky, followed by explosions - a real light show, if you ignore the death and destruction. By morning, daylight revealed a crater caused by the impact, along with smoldering cars, buildings, and infrastructure next to bombed-out debris. Fires broke out across the city, and an ambulance station was hit, leaving at least one person critically injured. Firefighters also doused a blaze destroying a hotel on a central boulevard. The state emergency service reported 13 dead and more than 30 injured, with 34 people rescued so far. Rescue operations continue at sites including a high-rise apartment building and homes in southeastern Kyiv.

Ukraine’s US ambassador Olha Stefanishyna summed it up on X: “Another horrific night for the residents of the city, who were forced to spend it in shelters. Fires and the destruction of civilian infrastructure and residential buildings in several districts of the city.” This marks the first large-scale Russian missile and drone strike on Ukraine in over two weeks - a brief respite that apparently felt too peaceful. Russia also hit military bases in central and eastern Ukraine, claiming to target defense and energy infrastructure in response to recent Ukrainian attacks on Russian power stations. Those attacks led to a rare confession by President Vladimir Putin that his country is facing fuel shortages - because nothing says “we’re winning” like admitting you’re running out of gas.

On Wednesday, Zelensky cut short his visit to Dublin after fresh intelligence suggested Moscow was planning to strike Ukraine. “I urge our people to be especially careful, to protect themselves, their children, and, of course, their families,” he said, adding that Putin “has been preparing this massive strike against Ukraine for some time now.” Meanwhile, Russian troops recently advanced into Kostyantynivka, one of Ukraine’s last key bulwarks in the east, which would provide a gateway to the entire Donbas region if secured. Ukrainian commanders counter that they have recaptured more territory this year than they have lost, disrupting Moscow’s supply lines between the Russian border and occupied Crimea. The ground war has otherwise stalled for months, with each side’s troops largely entrenched - because trench warfare is so 1917. Russia still controls about one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, mostly seized in the first few months of its full-scale invasion in February 2022.