Ukraine said Wednesday it had downed more than two dozen cruise missiles and a swarm of attack drones across the country in the “most powerful” aerial attack on Kyiv in weeks.
The assault left two dead and came as Russia said an airport near the border with NATO member Estonia had been targeted by drones, while state news agencies reported military transport planes were damaged.
In Kyiv, an AFP reporter heard at least three explosions at around 5:00 am (0200 GMT) as part of the country-wide barrage of 28 cruise missiles and 16 attack drones.
“We heard explosions, and we could see the flashes through the window,” Oksana Soloviuk, who lives next to one building hit by debris told AFP.
Yevgen Ananenko and his father ran downstairs when they heard the blasts and metal fragments cut into the side of their building.
“If it had fallen straight into the house, I doubt we would have survived,” he said.
Military officials described the attack as “the most powerful” to hit the city since the spring, and authorities said two employees of an infrastructure facility were killed by falling debris in the Shevchenkivsky district.
Russian forces launched groups of Iranian-made Shahed drones at the capital from different directions, and launched missiles from aircraft, the Kyiv city military administration said.
AFP reporters saw municipal workers assessing damage to the roof of a housing block where residents were clearing debris from flats with blown-out windows.
Law enforcement cordoned off forested territory where tangled pieces of metal had landed following the overnight attack.
