Ukraine has suffered one of its most symbolic attacks since the war began, as a key government building in central Kyiv was damaged during an overnight Russian missile and drone barrage.
The Cabinet of Ministers building, home to many of the country’s top officials, sustained damage to its roof and upper floors, igniting a fire that firefighters worked for hours to control. Until now, central government buildings in Kyiv had been largely spared, making the strike a powerful signal to residents.
Across Ukraine, at least four people were killed, including a young woman and her baby when a residential tower was struck in Kyiv’s Svyatoshynsky district. Several others were injured as apartment blocks in the Svyatoshynsky and Darnytskyi districts were partially destroyed.
Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched an unprecedented wave of missiles and drones, with wreckage falling across multiple sites. Explosions and fires were reported in Zaporizhzhia, Kryvyi Rih, Odesa, and the Sumy and Chernihiv regions.
President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the assault, calling it “a deliberate crime and an attempt to prolong the war,” and renewed calls for greater international resolve to halt the attacks.
Residents described terrifying moments as blasts shattered windows and set homes ablaze. Valentina, who lives in one of the damaged Kyiv apartment buildings, said she and her husband were asleep when the strike struck their flat. “At least we’re alive,” she said, mourning the loss of her young neighbor and her baby.
Ukrainian footballer Georgiy Sudakov revealed that his Kyiv apartment was also hit by a drone strike while his wife and children were inside, though he did not confirm if they were injured.
In Zaporizhzhia, a strike injured at least 17 people and damaged a nursery and several homes. Outside the city, a woman was killed and a man reported missing after a Russian glide bomb hit Novopavlivka. Additional deaths were reported in the Sumy and Chernihiv regions.
Russia said it targeted Ukraine’s military-industrial sites and transport infrastructure. At the same time, Ukrainian forces launched drone attacks inside Russia, damaging part of the Druzhba oil pipeline in the Bryansk region, according to Ukrainian officials. Russian authorities claimed to have downed 69 Ukrainian drones but reported civilian casualties in Belgorod.
The escalation comes days after Western allies discussed new security commitments to Ukraine, while Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed those talks and warned that any foreign troops sent to Ukraine would be treated as “legitimate targets.”
For many in Kyiv, seeing the government district hit for the first time is deeply unsettling—a stark reminder that even the capital’s heart remains vulnerable as the war grinds on.