Russia strikes Kyiv in major air attack, killing 21

Rare assault on city center in Ukrainian capital wounds 48 and damages EU offices.

- By Hanna ARHIROVA AND SAMYA KULLAB

DAN BASHAKOV Global Images

Ukraine RESCUERS search the site of a building in Kyiv, Ukraine, hit Thursday by Russia.

Russia launched a major air attack early Thursday on Kyiv that included a rare strike on the city center, killing at least 21 people, wounding 48 and damaging European Union diplomatic offices, authorities said.

The bombardment of drones and missiles was the first major Russian attack on Ukraine’s capital in weeks as U.S.-led peace efforts to end the three-year war struggled to gain traction. Britain said the attack sabotaged peace efforts, while top EU diplomat Kaja Kallas summoned Russia’s EU envoy to Brussels over the strikes that damaged EU offices.

Ukraine on Thursday requested an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council to discuss the overnight bombardment, while two of Ukraine’s top envoys were set to meet Friday with the Trump administration regarding mediation.

The Kremlin said Russia remained interested in continuing peace talks despite Thursday’s air attack, which was one of the war's biggest since it began in 2022.

The dead included four children between the ages of 2 and 17, said Tymur Tkachenko, the head of Kyiv’s city administration. He said more people could still be under the rubble, and search-and-rescue efforts continued Thursday evening.

Drones, missiles bombard Kyiv

The attack was one ofthe few times Russian drones and missiles have penetrated the heart ofKyivsince the start of the full-scale invasion.

Ukraine's air force said Russia launched 598 strike drones and decoys and 31 missiles of different types across the country early Thursday, most of them striking targets in Kyiv.

At least 33 locations across all 10 of the capital’s districts were directly hit or damaged by debris, Tkachenko said. Thousands of windows shattered as nearly 100 buildings were damaged, including a shopping mallin the city center.