KYIV — Russian missiles struck apartment blocks in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv and in the north-eastern city of Kharkiv in the early hours of Tuesday, killing civilians and wounding dozens, Ukrainian officials said, in one of the heaviest overnight barrages of the nearly five-year war.
FAKTA
- Russian missiles hit residential buildings in Kyiv and Kharkiv early on Tuesday, October 13, in overnight attacks on the country’s two largest cities.
- In Kharkiv, officials reported at least three people killed and 42 injured; part of an apartment block was destroyed and rescue workers were combing the rubble for survivors.
- In Kyiv, the air raid lasted more than two and a half hours — the longest since January — with casualties reported in the central Solomianskyi and western Sviatoshynskyi districts.
- Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched around 50 missiles and 130 drones overnight against several regions, including Dnipropetrovsk, Kyiv, Kharkiv and Poltava.
- The strikes came a day after Russia hit at least six energy targets across Ukraine, despite US President Donald Trump’s announced “energy ceasefire” initiative.
Overnight Barrage Hits Kyiv and Kharkiv Apartment Blocks
An explosion was heard in Kyiv in the early hours of Tuesday, a Reuters witness reported, as Russian missiles and drones struck the capital and other cities across Ukraine. Sirens wailed through the night, and residents hunkered down in subway stations and shelters.
Ukraine’s air force said it had intercepted some of the incoming weapons but described ballistic missiles as its “greatest challenge”, with jet-powered drones also difficult to shoot down. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the overnight assault “one of the most vile strikes” of the war and said new air defences were urgently needed.
Kyiv Air Raid Longest Since January
In Kyiv, the air raid went on for more than two and a half hours — the longest since January 2, officials said. Several people were hurt when a block of flats caught fire and another was damaged. Most of the casualties were reported in the Solomianskyi and Sviatoshynskyi districts, where a young woman was pulled from the rubble and taken to intensive care.
Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the capital had come under increased attack in recent weeks as winter approaches, with strikes on energy infrastructure causing repeated power cuts.
Kharkiv Residential Districts Under Fire
In Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city near the Russian border, early-morning missile attacks destroyed part of an apartment block, killing three people — including two women aged 40 and 56 — and injuring 42 others, according to city officials. Kharkiv’s mayor, Ihor Terekhov, said rescue workers were searching the wreckage for survivors. Earlier, three bodies were pulled from rubble left by Monday’s strikes on the city.
At least one more person was killed in the industrial city of Pavlohrad in the Dnipropetrovsk region.
Wider Context: Energy Strikes and New EU Sanctions
The overnight barrage followed a day of Russian strikes on Monday that hit at least six energy targets across Ukraine, prompting scheduled power cuts on Tuesday to ease pressure on the battered grid. Russia’s latest campaign against Ukraine’s grid began two weeks ago, already causing daily hours-long power cuts in Kyiv.
On Monday, European Union foreign ministers added 1,569 new names to the bloc’s sanctions list against Russia — the largest single package to date. The escalation has also complicated a US push for an “energy ceasefire” between the two sides, which Kyiv says Moscow is not observing.
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