Russian drone, missile attacks kill 3 in Kyiv

Russia attacked Ukraine with drones and missiles, killing three people and injuring at least 16 in the capital overnight into Friday, Ukrainian authorities said.

Russia also struck critical infrastructure in the western city of Lviv using an unidentified ballistic missile, Mayor Andriy Sadoviy said. The Western Command of Ukraine’s Air Force later said the missile travelled at a speed of 13,000 kilometres (more than 8,000 miles) per hour, adding that the specific type of missile was being investigated.

Several districts in Kyiv were hit in the attack, said Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration. In the Desnyanskyi district, a drone crashed on to the roof of a multi-storey building. At another address in the same district, the first two floors of a residential building were damaged as a result of the attack. In the Dnipro district, parts of a drone damaged a multi-storey building and a fire broke out.

Running water and electricity were disrupted in parts of the capital as a result of the attack, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said. The attack took place just hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy alerted the nation to Russia’s intentions for a large-scale offensive. He said Russia aimed to take advantage of the frigid weather in the capital, making roads and streets perilously icy.