A coordinated Russian assault struck major Ukrainian cities before dawn Tuesday, killing at least 18 people and wounding more than a hundred, while apartment buildings crumbled under fire and thousands of residents fled to subway tunnels for shelter. The attack signaled Moscow's determination to inflict civilian casualties and psychological damage even as battlefield momentum has stalled.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that Russia fired more than 650 drones and 70 ballistic, cruise and anti-ship missiles overnight. He immediately appealed to the United States for additional Patriot air defense systems, warning that without them the strikes would intensify. "If Ukraine is not protected from ballistic and other missile strikes, these strikes will continue," Zelenskyy said Tuesday.
The southeastern city of Dnipro absorbed the heaviest blow. Regional governor Oleksandr Hanzha said 12 people died including two children, with 35 injured. About 50 buildings were damaged, their windows blown out, vehicles charred and a children's playground destroyed. A rescue worker was among those killed in what appeared to be a double-tap strike, when attackers hit the same target twice to catch responders arriving at the scene.
"A search and rescue operation is underway in Dnipro at the site of a four-story apartment building," Zelenskyy said. "Part of the building was effectively demolished."
Kyiv's mayor Vitali Klitschko reported six dead and 65 injured across the capital, including three children. Multiple residential towers caught fire or sustained heavy damage. The attack sent thousands underground. Residents carrying mattresses and bags crowded into subway stations as explosions boomed overhead and air defense systems engaged incoming missiles.
Olena Kozachenko, a 36-year-old mother, described the escalation. Before recent months, she said, "we almost never went to shelters." Now, after warnings of danger, she and her 8-year-old son planned their night in the metro. "Now it feels like we're seeing a new level of attacks against civilians," she told NBC News.
Kozachenko highlighted Ukraine's critical shortage. "If we don't have sufficient air defenses, then these large-scale attacks will slowly erase our city," she said. Ukraine has warned for weeks that its air defense missile supply is dwindling, partly because such systems have been diverted to the Middle East.
Iryna Bilichenko, another Kyiv resident, said the bombardment was neither unexpected nor unfamiliar. "We all expected something would happen," the 36-year-old told NBC News. "Our emergency grab-bags were already packed."
Moscow's Defense Ministry acknowledged the assault, claiming it targeted military infrastructure in retaliation for what it called "terrorist attacks by the Kyiv regime." The Kremlin maintains it does not strike civilians, despite more than two years of attacks that have destroyed entire neighborhoods and killed thousands of non-combatants.
Last week, Russia warned of impending "systematic strikes" on Kyiv aimed at military facilities and decision-making centers, and urged foreign nationals to evacuate. The threat followed a Ukrainian drone attack on a Russian dormitory in the occupied Luhansk region that killed 21 people. Moscow described it as terrorism targeting children, while Ukraine denied intentionally hitting civilians.
At a defense meeting Monday, President Vladimir Putin suggested the war had entered a new phase. Kyiv's strike on the dormitory represented an escalation, he said. "That is their choice," he warned.
The broader context is one of stalled diplomacy and shifting U.S. attention. The war, which began with Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, shows no signs of resolution. With the Trump administration focused on Middle East crises, diplomatic efforts have frozen. Russia appears to be banking on a war of attrition and psychological pressure to force concessions.
Author Sarah Mitchell: "Zelenskyy's direct appeal for Trump's help underscores how much Ukraine's survival now depends on American military support rather than diplomacy that simply isn't happening."
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