Russia launched a large-scale drone and missile assault across Ukraine overnight on May 25, killing 12 people, including three children, and injuring at least 79 others, according to Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko.
The Ukrainian Air Force said Russia fired 69 missiles and sent 298 drones during the attack. Air defenses shot down 45 cruise missiles and destroyed 266 drones. However, 22 locations across the country were hit directly.
The attacks came just one night after one of the heaviest bombardments of Kyiv since the start of the full-scale war and coincided with Kyiv Day, a city holiday celebrated on the last Sunday of May.
Late on May 24, Ukraine’s Air Force warned of waves of drones headed toward multiple regions. A ballistic missile alert was issued just before midnight. Air raid sirens were later activated in all Ukrainian regions, including those in the far west.
Minister Klymenko reported that the strikes hit Kyiv and the regions of Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytskyi, Ternopil, Dnipropetrovsk, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Sumy, and Poltava. More than 80 residential buildings were damaged.
Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha condemned the attacks and urged the global community to push for a ceasefire.
“When the world calls for peace, Putin orders more strikes—more attacks and more murdered children,” Sybiha posted on X. “A full, unconditional ceasefire is urgently needed. The world must pressure Russia to stop the killing.”
In Zhytomyr Oblast, three children—ages 8, 12, and 17—were killed. All were from the same family. Both parents were hospitalized, and the mother is in serious condition, officials said. Twelve other people in the region were injured.
In Kyiv, residents were urged to take shelter as air defense systems engaged drones over the city.
“The night will not be easy,” warned Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration.
Drone debris hit a student dormitory in Kyiv’s Holosiivskyi district, sparking a fire. Four people were treated at the scene. In Desnianskyi district, one person was treated on-site, and another was hospitalized. In Dniprovskyi district, a house was damaged, and a young woman suffered a broken leg. A business center in Shevchenkivskyi district was also damaged. Victims ranged in age from 18 to 62.
Outside the capital, four people were killed in Kyiv Oblast, and 34 others were injured, officials said.
In Kharkiv, drone strikes hit Osnovianskyi, Novobavarskyi, and Shevchenkivskyi districts. A civilian facility and an office building were damaged. Shattered glass injured a child, who is now receiving medical care.
In Sumy Oblast, Konotop Mayor Artem Semenikhin called the assault “probably the most massive and combined attack on our city since World War II.”
In Chernihiv, drones and missiles caused fires at storage sites and non-residential buildings. One fire covered over 1,000 square meters. Authorities are still assessing the damage and casualties.
In Mykolaiv, a drone hit a five-story residential building, killing one man and injuring five people, including a teenager.
In the western city of Ternopil—less commonly targeted—a Kalibr cruise missile struck an industrial site, causing a fire, said Governor Viacheslav Nehoda.
In Khmelnytskyi Oblast, Governor Serhii Tiurin reported four deaths, five injuries, and widespread damage to civilian infrastructure.
In response to the strikes, Poland scrambled fighter jets and activated air defenses, a precaution it takes during major attacks on neighboring Ukraine.
This was the second night in a row of intense bombardment. The previous night, Russian missiles injured at least 15 people in Kyiv and caused explosions and destruction in several residential areas.
Despite growing international calls for peace, Russia continues to target civilian neighborhoods in increasingly deadly assaults.
