Russian ballistic missile and drone barrage across Ukraine into Thursday resulted in the deaths of at least eight civilians, including children, and wounded dozens of others, officials reported.
This assault expanded Russia’s nearly daily bombardment of Ukrainian cities as Moscow appeared to seek advantage from Kyiv's limited supply of Western-supplied anti-ballistic missile defenses.
Meanwhile, NATO member Poland was investigating Ukrainian claims that a Russian cruise missile entered its airspace during the attack.
The barrage affected regions throughout Ukraine, including areas near the Polish border far from the eastern front line where Ukraine is believed to store and manufacture weaponry for its fight against Russia’s invasion, which has lasted over four years. Long-range drones and missiles have targeted Russia's oil sector, contributing to a fuel crisis.
The attack followed two days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with U.S. President Donald Trump and representatives from American defense companies in Washington, during which he appealed for faster and larger deliveries of Patriot air defense systems, considered the best means to counter Russian ballistic assaults.
The Iran conflict has depleted stockpiles of the American-made interceptors. Trump has pledged to grant Ukraine licenses to manufacture its own Patriots, though establishing production could require a significant amount of time.
Zelenskyy stated on social media, “Given the critical shortage of air defense missiles from our partners, our warriors are accomplishing truly incredible things, demonstrating a very high level of professionalism.” He added, “This Russian terror once again proves that protection against the Russian missile threat is the most important task when it comes to saving the lives of our people.”
Russia asserts its attack targeted military installations.
Zelenskyy reported that at least 10 Ukrainian regions were struck, leading to damage or destruction of numerous homes, businesses, and infrastructure facilities.
He stated that Russia launched over 70 missiles, a substantial portion being ballistic, alongside more than 280 attack drones, of which over 260 were intercepted.
The Russian Defense Ministry claimed the targets included Ukrainian air bases, arms factories, and military telecommunications and logistics centers. These alleged targets encompassed drone production factories and storage depots, a missile plant, an aircraft repair facility, a factory producing electronic components, and a chemical plant.
In the Dnipropetrovsk region, Oleksandr Hanzha, head of the regional military administration, confirmed that the Russian attack killed six people and wounded 10. He noted on Telegram that children were among those deceased: a 6-year-old girl and boys aged 11 and 17 in the Kryvyi Rih area. The parents of these children died in the same incident, but Zelenskyy reported that two other children were rescued from under the rubble. On X, he wrote about one location, “It was an ordinary home, blown (to) smithereens by a ballistic missile … ”
In Kyiv, the National Police press service announced that Russian forces hit the capital with ballistic missiles, killing a 31-year-old man and injuring two others. The city experienced damage to residential buildings, a market, a garage cooperative, storage facilities, and vehicles, according to police.
Maksym Kozytskyi, head of the Lviv regional military administration, reported that a cruise missile attack impacted the western city of Lviv, wounding 34 people, including three children aged 6, 13, and 15. Emergency crews continued searching through debris.
In the Poltava region, Vitalii Diakivnych, regional military head, stated that a drone struck company warehouses, resulting in one fatality.
Poland Investigates Russian Cruise Missile Crossing Its Border
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha claimed on X that a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile crossed into Poland overnight, violating NATO airspace. Sybiha characterized this as a clear demonstration of the urgent need to strengthen Ukraine’s air defense and serving as a guarantee of broader European protection. Polish authorities had not immediately verified Sybiha's statements.
The Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces reported on X that an unidentified object flying westward during the middle of the night was tracked in Polish airspace, prompting the launch of an F-16 fighter jet for identification and interception. The command noted that the object vanished from radar screens before identification could occur. A helicopter subsequently flew to its last known location, where the crew found a probable impact site in an undeveloped area near Tarnawa-Kolonia village in the Lublin province, according to the command's write-up. Polish authorities have not confirmed what, if anything, crashed. Prime Minister Donald Tusk visited the area on Thursday morning to inspect the site.
Ukraine Strikes Two More Depots of Major Russian Online Retailer
Separately, Russia’s Defense Ministry stated that air defenses shot down 258 Ukrainian drones overnight. In a recent strike against the company's warehouses, a depot belonging to the Wildberries online retailer caught fire in Russia’s Penza region southeast of Moscow, according to Penza Governor Oleg Melnichenko. He reported one injury and the evacuation of 200 workers.
Wildberries also announced that its warehouse in Sarapul, Udmurtia region—over 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) from Ukraine—was struck by a Ukrainian drone and set ablaze. The company stated that its workers were safely evacuated. Ukraine has accused Wildberries of supplying goods usable by the Russian military.