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Overnight Attack on Kyiv Leaves 15 Injured as Russia Launches 250 Drones and Ballistic Missiles

Overnight Attack on Kyiv Leaves 15 Injured as Russia Launches 250 Drones and Ballistic Missiles

Russia launched one of its most massive and sustained air attacks on Kyiv overnight, targeting the Ukrainian capital with ballistic missiles and drones in a seven-hour assault that left at least 15 people injured.

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Photo of Vlad Litnarovych
Vlad Litnarovych
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The air raid alert in Kyiv began at 10:54 p.m. on May 23 and lasted until 5:10 a.m. the following morning, Ukrainian police reported on May 24.

The attack began with waves of drones, followed by ballistic missile strikes, according to Ukraine’s Air Force. Russian forces fired multiple ballistic missiles toward the capital, which bore the brunt of the assault.

In total, Russia launched 14 Iskander-M ballistic missiles (similar to North Korea’s KN-23) and approximately 250 drones across Ukraine.

Kyiv was the primary target. Dnipropetrovsk, Odesa, and Zaporizhzhia regions were also attacked.

Ukraine’s air defenses shot down six of the incoming ballistic missiles and neutralized 245 drones — 128 were destroyed in flight, while another 117 were jammed or lost track due to electronic warfare systems.

The aftermath of Russia’s attack on Kyiv and Kyiv region on May 24, 2025. (Source: SES)
The aftermath of Russia’s attack on Kyiv and Kyiv region on May 24, 2025. (Source: SES)

“A hard night for all of us. One of the most massive combined attacks on the capital. The enemy is improving its drone tactics while simultaneously launching ballistic missiles,” said Kyiv City Military Administration chief Tymur Tkachenko.

“A difficult night for the capital — one of the most massive Russian attacks in recent times. Civilian infrastructure was damaged. There’s no military logic in the Russians’ actions,” wrote Andrii Kovalenko, head of Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation.

The aftermath of Russia’s attack on Kyiv and Kyiv region on May 24, 2025. (Source: SES)
The aftermath of Russia’s attack on Kyiv and Kyiv region on May 24, 2025. (Source: SES)

Russian combined attack on Kyiv spread damage across multiple Kyiv districts:

  • Holosiivskyi district: debris from a downed drone fell across several locations, injuring one person and damaging five vehicles.

  • Shevchenkivskyi district: a fire broke out in a non-residential area. Firefighters managed to contain the blaze.

  • Dniprovs’kyi district: a drone fragment crashed into a third-floor apartment, injuring a married couple aged 40 and 41.

  • Solomianskyi district: fires erupted on the fourth and fifth floors of an apartment building, injuring seven people aged between 35 and 63. One man was rescued using a special evacuation hood and treated for smoke inhalation.

    The aftermath of Russia’s attack on Kyiv and Kyiv region on May 24, 2025. (Source: SES)
    The aftermath of Russia’s attack on Kyiv and Kyiv region on May 24, 2025. (Source: SES)

  • Sviatoshynskyi district: several non-residential facilities caught fire, including a one-story building storing flammable paint materials. Firefighters are still extinguishing the last hotspots. No injuries have been reported so far.

  • Obolonskyi district: at least four locations were damaged by falling drone fragments. A shopping mall sustained damage but did not catch fire. The worst-hit site was a residential high-rise, where multiple apartments from the third to sixth floors were damaged. Five people were injured in the district, including two who were rescued from the building. The fire has been extinguished.

Authorities have urged residents not to approach missile or drone debris and to call emergency services immediately.

The Kyiv region was also targeted during the overnight strike. In Brovary district, a man and a woman were hospitalized after sustaining injuries from falling debris.

In Boryspil district, a 43-year-old woman was injured and taken to a Kyiv hospital. A private home was also damaged in the strike.

According to police, two private homes were damaged in Vyshhorod district as well.

Earlier, Russia conducted a record drone strike on Ukraine, launching 273 drones from five directions.

The Kyiv region was among the most heavily affected areas. According to the head of the Kyiv Regional Military Administration, Mykola Kalashnyk, a woman born in 1997 was killed in the Obukhiv district.

Three others were injured: a 61-year-old man, a 59-year-old woman, and a 4-year-old child. All were hospitalized with moderate injuries.

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