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Russia has hit Kyiv with eight powerful ballistic missiles, a day after Vladimir Putin claimed his troops were winning on the battlefield and that his maximalist goals to seize more territory in Ukraine were unchanged.
Several explosions were reported in Kyiv on Friday around 7am local time. Ukraine’s air force said it had shot down eight Khinzal and Iskander-M missiles, with debris falling in several districts of the city. One person was killed and at least 12 were injured.
Residents woke to the sound of loud booms and wailing air raid sirens. One intercepted missile fell on the Toronto business centre, smashing its top storey, and setting fire to cars parked in the street beneath. A mangled vehicle was tossed over a fence.
The complex was home to Superhumans, a prosthetics and rehabilitation centre for wounded Ukrainian soldiers. Its founder Andrey Stavnitser said his office was devastated. “It’s scary to think what would have happened if our glass room had been blown a couple of hours later,” he posted.
The same blast broke stained glass windows in the St Nicholas Roman Catholic church opposite. The church’s facade, rose window and external and internal glazing were damaged. Stairwells leading to its gothic spires, built early in the 20th century, were wrecked.
The Unesco-listed building is the second oldest church in the capital. Windows in the national house of music next door were shattered too. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, at least 1,222 cultural heritage sites have been broken or destroyed, Ukrainian officials said.
The attack caused minor damage to diplomatic buildings including the Portuguese embassy. Albania and Montenegro’s missions are located in the same block. “This was a very intense attack by the Russian Federation. It is absolutely unacceptable for attacks to damage or target diplomatic facilities,” said Paulo Rangel, the Portuguese foreign minister.
Touring the devastation on Friday, Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, accused Russia of “genocide”. “There is no justification for this,” he said. He said the latest strike showed Putin’s complete indifference to the deaths of women and children. “We need air defences,” he said.
Remains from another rocket crashed into the Holosiivskyi district, where one person was killed. Six people were admitted to hospital. Rescuers spent the morning putting out fires and clearing up rubble. The attack left 630 buildings without heating and power.
“The morning in Kyiv was truly devastating. The missiles were frighteningly close to our office. The offices of our clients sustained significant damage,” said Yuliia Kuznets of the law firm VB Partners. “Thank goodness it was early morning and not many people were injured.”
Since its all-out attack in 2022, Russia has regularly launched missiles at Ukrainian towns and cities. In recent months it has systematically targeted the country’s power infrastructure, in an attempt to demoralise the population and leave it freezing during winter months.
Friday’s combined attack featured Khinzal missiles launched by Russian fighter jets, as well as Iskander-Ms fired from ground platforms. North Korean KN-23 missiles – sent by Pyongyang to Moscow earlier this year – may also have been deployed, Ukraine’s air force said.
Speaking on Thursday at an end-of-year press conference, Putin claimed the war had made Russia “much stronger”. He said he was ready to meet the incoming US president, Donald Trump, to discuss peace proposals. But he repeated his hardline stance that Moscow would keep control of Crimea, plus four Ukrainian regions supposedly “annexed” in 2022.
Also on Friday, Russian carried out a significant barrage on the southern city of Kherson. One person was killed and nine others injured, during bombardment at 8am with heavy artillery and rockets. Ukraine’s armed forces said they had foiled an attempt by Russian troops to cross the Dnipro river near the city’s ruined Antonivskyi bridge.
