Russian strikes kill at least two in Ukraine as civilian toll hits record high
A ballistic missile hit a Kyiv warehouse and a drone struck Zaporizhzhia, adding to a week of heavy casualties that the UN says is the worst since the war began.
Russian strikes on Ukraine killed at least two people early Saturday, local authorities reported, continuing a pattern of heavy bombardment that has escalated tensions across the region. The attacks occurred just a day after a series of bombings claimed at least 20 lives, marking one of the deadliest periods in the ongoing conflict.
In the capital, Kyiv City Military Administration confirmed one death and several injuries following a fire at a warehouse in the Darnytskyi district. The incident followed an alert for a ballistic missile, with the administration describing the casualty figures as preliminary.
Simultaneously, a Russian drone attack in the southern city of Zaporizhzhia killed a man and wounded four others, according to Ivan Fedorov, the head of the regional military administration. These strikes highlight the continued reach of Russian air power into both urban and industrial zones.
The Saturday attacks followed a severe wave of violence on Friday, which killed at least 20 people. A daytime drone strike on a busy shopping centre in Kryvyi Rih, the hometown of President Volodymyr Zelensky, was particularly devastating, killing 16 people and injuring 130, including 23 children.
Regional military governor Oleksandr Ganzha reported that rescue operations continued through the night, with nine people listed as missing, including two children. The scale of the injuries in Kryvyi Rih has drawn significant attention to the vulnerability of civilian infrastructure.
The United Nations stated that the civilian death toll for the year has risen to its highest level since the first months of the war. Kyiv has repeatedly appealed to allies for additional support, noting that Ukrainian forces are struggling to intercept salvos of ballistic missiles.
Diplomatic efforts to end Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II have stalled, with Russia demanding sweeping territorial and political concessions. Zelensky has rejected these terms, arguing they would amount to an effective capitulation, while Ukraine has escalated retaliatory strikes to pressure Moscow towards negotiations.
