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Russia Used North Korean Missile for First Time in Nearly a Year, Killing Family Near Kryvyi Rih
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Russian forces launched a North Korean ballistic missile during an overnight attack that killed a family near the city of Kryvyi Rih, marking the first suspected use of such a weapon in nearly a year, according to two sources cited by Reuters on July 30.
The strike was part of a larger aerial assault involving dozens of missiles and hundreds of drones that killed eight people in total across the country.
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The strike in the settlement of Radushne, near Kryvyi Rih, resulted in the deaths of at least six members of a large family, while search operations for four others remain ongoing.
A military source stated that August 8, 2025, was the last time Ukrainian authorities confirmed a Russian attack involving a North Korean missile.
According to one of the sources, the deployment of this weapon following a lengthy gap indicates that Moscow has obtained a fresh stockpile of munitions to sustain its intensified missile strikes. Russian forces first began launching North Korean KN-23 and KN-24 short-range ballistic missiles against Ukrainian targets in late 2023.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Russia launched dozens of missiles and hundreds of drones overnight, leaving eight people dead, while condemning the shortage of air defense supplies and calling on allies for assistance.
North Korea has remained a close partner to Russia throughout Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In addition to ballistic missiles, Pyongyang has provided thousands of military personnel and millions of artillery shells to support Russian military operations.
The strike caused severe structural damage in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, completely destroying a residential house near Kryvyi Rih. Emergency personnel were dispatched to the location to clear the heavy debris and secure the impacted site following the missile hit.
The destruction of the home resulted in the deaths of a local family who were trapped inside during the attack. These casualties were among the eight fatalities reported across Ukraine following a large-scale overnight assault involving dozens of missiles and hundreds of drones.
UPD: Zelenskyy confirmed that, according to preliminary data, Russian forces used a North Korean missile for the attack on Radushne near Kryvyi Rih for the first time in a long while.
He stated that specialists will still conduct examinations to verify these findings.
Previously, it was reported that North Korea secretly supplied Russia with between 8 million and 11 million artillery shells over a two-and-a-half-year period to support its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Operating through a covert maritime supply chain, four Russian cargo ships completed at least 112 voyages between North Korea and the Russian Far East to bypass international sanctions.
These deliveries provided Moscow with up to 350,000 shells per month—accounting for as much as half of Russia’s artillery fire in some combat zones—before maritime shipments slowed significantly in early 2026 due to rising Russian domestic production and depleted North Korean stockpiles.
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