Russia Throws Nearly Its Entire Arsenal at Kyiv in One of the Largest Attacks on Ukraine

Overnight on May 24, Russian forces launched a total of 690 aerial targets at Ukraine, including 90 missiles and 600 drones, with Kyiv as the primary target, according to the Ukrainian Air Forces.

Ukrainian Air Defenses reported intercepting or suppressing 604 of them. Among the weapons used was a medium-range ballistic missile fired from Kapustin Yar in Russia's Astrakhan region—the launch site associated with the "Oreshnik" system.

Kyiv and region

In Kyiv, emergency crews responded to fires and destruction at more than 40 locations across nearly every district, the State Emergency Service reported. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said two people were killed and at least 62 were injured, including two children. 28 people were hospitalized, three of them in serious condition.

The Shevchenkivskyi district was among the hardest hit. A strike on a five-story residential building caused a partial collapse and fire, killing one person and injuring three others. Another fatality was preliminarily reported at a nine-story residential building struck between the eighth and ninth floors.

Fires and damage were also reported at a school, business center, market, shopping center, supermarket, garage cooperatives, residential buildings, warehouse facilities, and a construction hypermarket across the city.

The State Emergency Service of Ukraine added that the National Chornobyl Museum was also damaged in the attack. The museum had reopened only a month earlier following a long restoration.

In the Darnytskyi district, rescuers evacuated or pulled to safety 22 people from a burning two-story dormitory.

Russia also likely struck the city of Bila Tserkva, south of Kyiv, with an "Oreshnik" intermediate-range ballistic missile, according to Ukrainian officials. Footage published online captured the characteristic moment of impact, with the warhead separating into multiple submunitions, followed by a series of powerful explosions.

Cherkasy region

A Russian drone struck a multi-story residential building in the city of Cherkasy, sparking a fire that spread through apartments between the 5th and 9th floors, according to Ihor Taburets, the head of the Cherkasy regional military administration.

Eleven people were injured, including two children. Most received medical assistance on site, while three were taken to the hospital by emergency brigades.

Regional air defenses and mobile fire groups shot down eight Russian missiles and 22 drones overnight, Taburets said. In the Zolotonosha district, a cruise missile damaged a disused farm building, but no casualties were reported.

Khmelnytskyi region

Ukrainian air defenses shot down or suppressed one missile and one drone over the Khmelnytskyi region during the daytime attacks on May 23 and the overnight strikes on May 24, according to Serhiy Tyurin, the head of the Khmelnytskyi regional military administration. No casualties or damage were reported.

Dnipropetrovsk region

Seven people, including two children, were injured in Russian attacks on the Nikopol district, where Russian forces used artillery and drones, according to Oleksandr Hanzha, the head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration.

The Nikopol and Marhanets communities were the worst affected, with multi-story residential buildings sustaining damage.

Two men aged 39 and 46 were in serious condition. Two women aged 32 and 37, along with a three-month-old infant and a four-year-old child, were hospitalized in moderate condition. A 34-year-old man was being treated as an outpatient.

Earlier, on April 16, Russian forces launched one of their largest coordinated air assaults against Ukraine in recent months, firing more than 700 missiles and drones in 24 hours and killing at least 16 people across Kyiv, Odesa, Dnipro, and other cities, with emergency responders in Kyiv hit in a double-tap strike.

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