Valentyn Ogirenko/Portal
Police officers inspect the grounds of a kindergarten damaged in Russian drone strikes in Kiev, Ukraine, on Nov. 25, 2023.
Kyiv, Ukraine CNN —
Russia launched its biggest drone attack on the Ukrainian capital Kiev since its invasion began on Saturday, according to local officials.
“In total, almost 75 Shahed drones were launched from two directions – Primorsko-Akhtarsk and Kursk Region, Russia. The main target was the city of Kiev,” the Ukrainian Air Force said in a Telegram post, describing the attack as a “record number” of drones.
It said air defenses intercepted 71 of the Iranian-made drones in six regions of Ukraine – but the vast majority of the drones were intercepted in the Kyiv region.
“Anti-aircraft missile troops, tactical aircraft, mobile fire groups and electronic warfare units were involved in repelling the air attack,” the Air Force said. In addition, a Kh-59 guided missile was destroyed in the Dnipropetrovsk region.
Mykhailo Shamanov, a spokesman for the military administration of the city of Kyiv, described several waves of drones approaching the capital from different directions.
A CNN producer in Kiev heard loud explosions and repeated bangs as drones buzzed overhead. The city’s military administration warned residents to take cover: “A large number of enemy drones are entering Kiev from different directions!” We urge you to stay in the shelters until the alarm rings!”
According to Shamanov, it was the fourth drone attack on Kiev this month.
According to Kiev Mayor Vitalii Klitschko, at least two people were injured in Kiev’s Solomianskyi district.
Several locations in Solomianskyi District caught fire, including a residential building and other non-residential buildings, Klitschko said.
He added that the second floor of a five-story residential building in Solomianskyi district was damaged and that debris from downed drones fell on two residential buildings – one in Dniprovskyi district, the other in Holosiivskyi district.
In a separate statement, Serhii Popko, the head of the Kyiv city military administration, said a fire broke out on the grounds of a kindergarten after a drone was shot down in Solomianskyi district.
According to the country’s Energy Ministry, the attack knocked out power to an overhead power line, leaving 77 residential buildings and 120 facilities in the city center without power.