Russia launches largest ballistic missile attack on Kyiv

Russia launched its largest ballistic missile attack on Kyiv since the start of its full-scale invasion, killing at least one person and wounding more than a dozen others in a multi-hour assault that started in the early hours of Sunday, July 19, 2026. Ukrainian officials said the capital was struck by approximately 40 to 42 missiles, including Iskander-M and hypersonic Zircon types, in what the acting foreign minister described as a brutal terrorist attack.

The attack began around 1:30 a.m. local time, with air raid sirens sounding and explosions echoing across the city for several hours. Ukraine's air force reported that air defenses shot down 18 out of 41 ballistic missiles launched, but that 23 missiles and 10 drones struck about 20 locations, primarily in the capital. The strikes ignited fires in at least five districts, damaging residential buildings, a dormitory, office and industrial sites, a supermarket, and vehicles. Rescue workers pulled several people from burning buildings, including a three-story structure in the central Shevchenkivskyi district where a body was recovered. The blast wave from an impact caused the ceiling of a metro station vestibule to collapse.