Russia and Ukraine on Tuesday traded accusations concerning overnight air strikes that killed at least four people and injured over 60 others.
Ukraine’s State Emergency Service (DSNS) said in a statement on Telegram that three people were killed and 15 others injured when a Russian missile strike destroyed a section of a four-story residential building in the Kholodnohirskyi district of Kharkiv, the country’s second-largest city.
The DSNS reported that the strike occurred on Monday evening and also targeted the city’s Shevchenkivskyi district, noting that four people were rescued, though some may still be trapped under the debris.
“Despite the threat of repeated strikes, rescue workers, police, medics, volunteers, K-9 units, and municipal crews are working at the scene,” the DSNS added.
The DSNS later updated the death toll to four and the number of injured to 41.
Meanwhile, the Kiev City Military Administration said one person was injured in a strike that affected a residential building in the Darnytskyi district.
Khmelnytskyi Governor Serhii Tiurin said four people were injured in the western region after drones targeted it over the past day, adding that the windows and entrance area of a regional medical facility were damaged during one of the attacks.
In the northwestern Rivne region, Governor Oleksandr Koval said 20 people were injured, one critically, in a strike on the regional capital that damaged an educational building.
Separately, Heorhii Reshetnikov, acting governor of the southern Mykolaiv region, said a cargo terminal and an unspecified number of warehouses were damaged in Russian strikes.
Ukraine’s Air Force claimed air defences shot down 88 out of 108 drones launched by Russia overnight. It added that Russia launched five Iskander-M/S-400 ballistic missiles from the border region of Bryansk.
The Russian Defence Ministry, meanwhile, said it launched coordinated strikes against a workshop and locomotive depot in Kiev, as well as a logistics centre, a warehouse and dry cargo ship in the southern Mykolaiv region, which it said are “involved in delivering military cargo to Ukraine.”
‘Ukraine did not receive early warning from partners on overnight strikes in Kiev’
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country received no early warning from its partners about the strikes in Kiev, and that it has not carried out strikes on Russia's energy sector in general for the two days since US President Donald Trump announced an energy ceasefire.
"But Russia did not heed the American President. During this time, the Russians have attacked both our energy facilities and our critical infrastructure, sending absolutely clear signals that they have no intention of refraining from strikes on Ukraine," Zelenskyy said in a statement on X.
"Our position remains unchanged: Ukraine is ready for reciprocal steps toward de-escalation, and effective pressure on Russia is needed to make de-escalation happen. Wars end when the aggressor realises that it cannot prolong the war," he added.
Separately, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha told a panel of the Warsaw Security Forum in Poland that Kiev continues to receive intelligence data from the US.
“Yes, we continue this cooperation (with the American side). And, also, it is true that yesterday’s attack, or night attack, (the) air raid alert was launched with a delay. But it is because of (the) special type of the weaponry which was used by (the) Russian side,” Sybiha said.
The Financial Times, citing people familiar with the matter, reported over the weekend that US envoys, in talks with their Ukrainian counterparts on Friday, raised the possibility of cutting off intelligence sharing to Kiev if it did not heed Washington’s warning to halt energy strikes in Russia.
Strikes in Russia
Russia’s defence ministry claimed that air defences shot down 604 Ukrainian drones over 15 regions and over the Sea of Azov.
Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin alleged that 417 drones were heading towards the region surrounding the Russian capital between 8.30 pm on Monday (1730GMT) and 7 am on Tuesday (0400GMT), with 65 of them destroyed.
Kaluga Governor Vladislav Shapsha said 73 drones were downed in his region overnight, damaging a school building, two private houses, and one car in the Mosalsky district.
The governors of the Tula and Voronezh regions reported Ukrainian drones being downed over their respective regions without any consequences, while Stavropol Governor Vladimir Vladimirov said damage was recorded in the industrial zone of the city of Nevinnomyssk.
“According to preliminary reports, there are no casualties, and there is no damage on the ground in Solnechnodolsk. … Inspections of the impact sites and damage assessments are ongoing, and repair work has begun,” Vladimirov said.
Yegor Kovalchuk, acting governor of the border region of Bryansk, said three firefighters were injured and hospitalised while extinguishing a blaze caused by a drone attack in the town of Zhukovka.
Independent verification of the claims is difficult due to the war, which continues for more than four years.
Moscow and Kiev have intensified strikes in recent months, targeting each other's logistics centers, ports, and energy infrastructure.
Both countries deny deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure, maintaining that strikes are directed at military targets or facilities linked to military activities only.
