KYIV: Early Sunday morning, at least three people were injured and multiple fires erupted in Kyiv due to a missile attack from Russia, according to the city’s mayor and military officials.
Air raid warnings were issued across all of Ukraine starting at 2:00 AM GMT. The Ukrainian air force alerted on the threats, which included regions near Poland, prompting NATO to deploy aircraft to monitor and ensure air security.
Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported on Telegram that fires were reported in three different districts of Kyiv. Emergency responders rushed two civilians to the hospital from the Darnytskyi district, located on the eastern side of the Dnipro River that runs through the city.
“Stay in shelters!” Klitschko urged residents. Eyewitnesses noted several loud explosions, indicating that air defense systems were being activated to counter the attacks.
Details about the scale of the assault were not immediately available. Currently, there have been no reports of strikes or damage in Ukraine’s western regions bordering Poland. Poland, which is a NATO member, has been on high alert since a stray Ukrainian missile hit the southern village of Przewodow last year, killing two people. The country scrambles fighter jets whenever Russia launches missiles aimed at areas near its border.
These attacks on Kyiv came shortly after reports from the southern region of Mykolaiv indicated that three people were harmed in separate Russian strikes. Just the previous day, a Russian assault resulted in the deaths of at least 19 individuals, including nine children, in the city of Kryvyi Rih. There has been no immediate response from Russian officials.
Both sides involved in the conflict have denied deliberately targeting civilians since the war began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine three years ago. Thousands of civilians have lost their lives, most of whom are Ukrainian. Recently, US President Donald Trump, who assumed office promising to resolve the war quickly, has been working towards mediating a peace agreement.
At the end of last month, the United States announced that it had reached two ceasefire agreements with Russia and Ukraine, one of which would stop strikes on each other’s energy facilities.
