Russia pounded Ukraine’s capital of Kyiv with missiles early on Monday, officials said. The falling debris from the downed weapons injured at least two people. This also sparked fires and damaged homes and infrastructure.
The air force said it had destroyed 22 out of 35 missiles and 20 out of 23 attack drones. Those included nine ballistic missiles. Around 13 cruise missiles were also destoryed in the Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Poltava, Mykolaiv and Zaporizhzhia regions.
Air raid alerts went out across Ukraine for nearly two hours before the air force declared the skies clear at 0330 GMT. NATO member and neighbour Poland activated Polish and allied aircrafts to keep its airspace safe during the attacks.
A boiler house at a Kyiv water plant was partially damaged. The entrance to a metro station doubling as a bomb shelter in the Svyatoshynksyi district was also attacked. Kyiv’s Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the station still operates.
Back To School
The district is home to universities and schools.
The broad bombardment coincided with the first day back at school for many children.
The attack injured at least two people, Klitschko said. Cars were set ablaze across the city as well as a non-residential building in the Shevchenkivskyi district, he added.
Emergency services also went to the districts of Svyatoshynksyi, Holosiivskyi, and Solomyanskyi, where debris fell from destroyed missiles, Klitschko added.
Solomyanskyi is home to a major train station and Kyiv’s main airport. The historic neighbourhood of Svyatoshynksyi is on the city’s western edge, while Holosiivskyi is in its southwest.
Witnesses in Kyiv heard a series of loud explosions in what sounded like the work of air defence units, some in the central area.
The attack came exactly a week after Moscow launched more than 200 missiles and drones on Ukraine, killing seven people and striking energy facilities nationwide in what Kyiv called the war’s “most massive” attack.
Russia denies targeting civilians in the 30-month-old war unleashed by Moscow’s invasion of its smaller neighbour.
