Russia launched a large-scale drone and missile assault on Kyiv overnight Sunday, killing at least four people and injuring dozens, as President Volodymyr Zelensky reported the attack included the powerful, rarely used Oreshnik ballistic missile.
Zelensky said the missile struck near the city of Bila Tserkva in the Kyiv region as part of a sprawling overnight barrage that included around 600 drones and 90 missiles launched from air, sea, and ground platforms, Ukraine’s Air Force said.
Air defenses intercepted most incoming targets, though damage was recorded across at least 40 locations in and around the capital.
Oreshnik Missile Reportedly Used in Rare Deployment
The use of the Oreshnik, a nuclear-capable, hypersonic intermediate-range missile, marked the third time the system has been deployed during the more than four-year war, according to Ukrainian officials.
Widespread Destruction Across Capital
Explosions were heard across the city as air raid sirens sounded through the night, with strikes reported near government offices, residential buildings, and schools, The Associated Press (AP) reported.
Damage was reported at 40 sites across multiple districts of the capital, according to Tymur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, in a post on Telegram.
Fires broke out in multiple districts as emergency services responded to damaged apartment blocks, supermarkets, and warehouses.
“It was a terrible night, and there had never been anything like it in the entire war,” said Kyiv resident Svitlana Onofryichuk, 55, who has worked in the market that was damaged for 22 years.
“I am very sorry that I have to say goodbye to Kyiv now, I am not staying there anymore, there is no possibility,” she added. “My job is gone, everything is gone, everything has burned down.”
What Is the Oreshnik?
The Oreshnik is one of Russia’s newest missile systems and is capable of carrying nuclear or conventional warheads while traveling at speeds exceeding Mach 10, according to from Russian officials.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said the weapon can evade missile defenses and strike hardened underground targets, though such claims cannot be independently verified.
Russia first used the Oreshnik in a strike on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro in November 2024 and again in the western Lviv region in January. Its use has been limited compared with more frequently deployed systems such as cruise missiles, Iskander ballistic missiles and long-range drones.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a U.S.-based research group, has said that the Oreshnik is likely an experimental variant of Russia’s RS-26 “Rubezh” intermediate-range ballistic missile, equipped with multiple reentry vehicles designed to complicate interception and overwhelm air defense systems.
The latest attack came after Ukraine stepped up long-range drone strikes inside Russia, targeting military and energy infrastructure and hitting areas near Moscow in recent weeks.
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