Russian strikes on Kyiv kill 4, injure at least 15, officials say

Russian strikes on Ukraine’s capital killed at least four people and wounded more than a dozen others, local officials said Saturday local time, after Kyiv’s mayor warned of a ballistic missile attack.

It comes after the United Nations found June was the deadliest month for civilians in Ukraine since April 2022, as Moscow ramped up its long-range strikes on towns and cities across Ukraine.

Kyiv’s military administration said the strikes had killed four people, and the city’s mayor reported 15 people, including two boys aged 13 and 17, were wounded and transported to hospital.

“Explosions in the city. Kyiv is under ballistic missile attack. Stay in shelters!” Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko wrote earlier on Telegram.

Agence France-Presse journalists also reported hearing explosions.

More than 10 explosions were heard in a row, the journalists reported, adding that the intensity of the blasts triggered car alarms on the streets.

On Thursday, a Russian ballistic missile and drone barrage across Ukraine killed at least eight civilians, including children, and wounded dozens more.

Ukraine, meanwhile, has escalated its retaliatory strikes on Russia in recent months, partly to pressure Moscow to the negotiating table after nearly four-and-a-half years of war. Ukraine has targeted energy and logistics infrastructure. 

Putin acknowledged in June that Ukrainian strikes were causing “problems” for Russia, saying they were “observing a certain shortage, but it’s not critical.”

Russian online retail giant Wildberries said Friday its logistics facility in Volgograd caught fire after an overnight attack — the latest in a series of strikes on the company’s facilities.

Kyiv has accused the e-commerce giant — which employs thousands of people and has become a key part of the economy — of storing drone parts and helping the Russian army.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with President Trump this week for talks, as Kyiv and Moscow carried out long-range strikes.

Zelenskyy said his meeting with Mr. Trump was “good” and that they discussed the licenses for the production of Patriot missile interceptors, critical in Ukraine’s efforts to combat Moscow. 

Mr. Trump and Zelenskyy most recently met earlier this month on the sidelines of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in Turkey, where Mr. Trump announced the U.S. would allow Ukraine to build its own Patriot missiles.