KYIV, Ukraine — On Saturday, Russia unleashed its most intense drone attack on Ukraine since its full-scale invasion of the country in 2022. Military officials reported that the capital city was the main target and the attack lasted for over six hours.
“Kyiv bore the brunt of the assault,” shared Ukrainian Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk on his Telegram channel.
A total of 75 Iranian-made Shahed drones were launched by Russia against Ukraine, out of which 74 were successfully destroyed by air defenses, according to the Ukrainian air force.
This was the most massive air attack by drones on Kyiv,” said Serhii Popko, the head of the Kyiv city administration. Later, Ukrainian air force spokesperson Yurii Ihnat confirmed that 66 air targets over the capital and the surrounding region were shot down during the morning.
The relentless assault resulted in the injury of at least five civilians, including an 11-year-old child, and caused damage to several buildings due to debris from the downed drones. One of the buildings that suffered damage was a kindergarten. “The wounded are receiving medical treatment, and fortunately, their injuries are not life-threatening,” said Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko.
In the Solomiansky district of the city, the debris had created a large crater in a residential area, and the windows of a nearby building were blown out. Elderly residents received immediate medical assistance while others took shelter in a nearby subway station. The sound of more drones could be heard nearby as people in the neighborhood started cleaning up the debris and broken glass. Some residents hastily sealed their broken windows with tape and paper to keep out the cold November winds.
The assault on Kyiv began at 4 a.m. and continued in waves, causing power outages in 77 residential buildings and 120 institutions, according to Popko. The Ukrainian Energy Ministry also reported that around 17,000 people were left without power in the Kyiv region, and four power lines were damaged. However, power was restored by early afternoon.
“Our soldiers managed to shoot down most of the drones, but unfortunately, not all of them,” wrote Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Telegram. “We are continuing to strengthen our air defense and shoot down more drones,” he added.
Notably, the attack took place on the day of Holodomor Memorial Day, which commemorates the man-made famine that killed millions of Ukrainians between 1932 and 1933 under Soviet rule. The day is observed on the fourth Saturday in November every year.
In addition to Kyiv, the Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv, and Kirovohrad regions were also targeted in the drone attack.
Meanwhile, in the southern Kherson region, one person was killed and three others were wounded as a result of shelling, shared regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin on Saturday. According to Prokudin, the region had been shelled 100 times in the past 24 hours.
