Ukraine Strikes Russian Refinery in Siberia After Kyiv Attack Kills 24
Russian missile and drone strikes killed at least 24 people in and around Kyiv, with 16 deaths in the capital and eight in the nearby town of Vyshneve, as Ukraine faces a major overnight attack involving ballistic missiles just before a NATO summit. Ukraine strikes back with long-range drones on a distant Russian oil facility even as the capital reels from the assault.
Deadly Overnight Assault on Kyiv
Russia fired 68 missiles, many of them ballistic, and 351 attack drones in the combined attack. [2] Ukrainian air defenses shot down many of the drones and cruise missiles but lacked sufficient protection against the ballistic threats. [2] Sixteen people died in Kyiv and eight more in Vyshneve, while more than 100 people were wounded across the strikes. [2] The morning strike created a crater in a multi-storey apartment block in Kyiv’s Podilsky district and ripped floors apart. [2] Around 30 residential buildings in Kyiv were hit. [2] Two additional people, including an 18-year-old girl, were killed in Zaporizhzhia. [2]
Zelensky's Response and Plea to NATO
President Zelensky condemned the attack as a brutal strike and stated that the Russians’ tactics are unchanged: to inflict as much pain and damage as possible on Ukrainians and on Ukraine. [2] He noted that Kyiv succeeded in shooting down drones and cruise missiles but had not enough means of defence against hard-to-intercept ballistic missiles. [2] Zelensky described it as absurd that production has still not been organised to the extent necessary to protect people from ballistic terror. [2] He urged NATO allies to supply more Patriot interceptor missiles and said Kyiv expected decisions on Ukrainian air defence at the NATO summit in Turkey. [3] [2] NATO chief Mark Rutte stated that allies and NATO partners must continue to ensure Ukraine gets what it needs. [2]
Terror and Evacuations in Vyshneve
In Vyshneve a strike on a warehouse triggered massive secondary explosions and fires. [4] Residents described a huge mushroom cloud, burning fragments flying through the air, and the whole house shaking like a house of cards. [4] One resident was blown over by the shockwave and fled through fields and a cemetery as debris fell. [4] Another said everything just kept detonating and many people were crying. [4] Authorities ordered the evacuation of around 500-600 residents due to the ongoing threat of secondary detonations. [4] [2] President Zelensky described the situation in Vyshneve as difficult because of a secondary detonation and said he had instructed security services to clarify what happened. [2] [4]
Ukrainian Retaliatory Strike on Russian Refinery
Ukraine strikes an oil refinery in Russia’s Omsk region using upgraded Fire Point long-range drones in one of its deepest attacks of the war. [2] The Ukrainian army said the Omsk refinery was involved in supplying the Russian occupation army. [2] The governor of Omsk confirmed the refinery had been hit by drones and reported no casualties. [2] Moscow said its forces had shot down more than 500 Ukrainian drones overnight. [2]
Russian Claims and Broader Context
Russia’s defence ministry said the massive strike had targeted military-industrial enterprises and fuel and energy facilities in several Ukrainian regions. [2] US-led attempts to broker an end to the war have gone nowhere. [2] The White House said Donald Trump would meet Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday during the NATO summit to talk about how to end the war. [2] A senior US official said Trump would follow up with Russia’s Vladimir Putin. [2]
Damage to Infrastructure and Rescue Efforts
The attack damaged facilities operated by DTEK, Ukraine’s largest private energy company, including company buildings and premises, destroyed office equipment, and damaged repair vehicles with shrapnel. [4] The hardest-hit communities were the towns of Boyarka and Vyshneve in Kyiv Oblast, which remained without electricity. [4] Emergency workers searched through destroyed apartments and carried out bodies on white sheets. [2] Experts inspected every residential building and outbuilding to ensure no injured or deceased people remained inside. [4] Air raid alerts were issued for almost all of Ukraine’s regions overnight. [4]
What to watch next: Zelensky is expected to hold talks with Donald Trump at the NATO summit in Turkey, where decisions on additional air defence support are anticipated.
