Deadly Missile and Drone Barrage Ravages Kyiv, Killing at Least Three and Injuring Dozens【1†source】
Dozens of explosions ripped through Kyiv on the night of August 28, leaving at least three dead, more than a dozen injured, and a city once again scarred by the relentless barrage of Russian missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles. The blast‑laden strike, described by Kyiv’s mayor Vitali Klitschko as a “large‑scale attack,” marked the second‑most devastating assault on the Ukrainian capital since Russia launched its full‑scale invasion on February 24, 2022.
29 August 2025
Russia’s war machine has, over the past three years, turned Kyiv into a repeatedly targeted node in a campaign aimed at eroding Ukrainian morale and crippling critical infrastructure. Early on the first day of the invasion, Russian forces fired from the north‑west, striking the city at around 05:40 local time. The following morning, Russian tanks rolled onto the outskirts of the capital, prompting Ukrainian troops to demolish nearby bridges in a desperate bid to slow the advance.
The pattern of strikes has persisted. In October 2022, after the dramatic explosion on the Crimea bridge, Russian missiles poured into Kyiv and other cities—a wave that foreshadowed the relentless drone swarms that have become a hallmark of Moscow’s tactics. May 28‑29, 2023, saw another series of aerial attacks that claimed two lives and wounded three more, underscoring the city’s vulnerability to high‑precision strikes.
The latest assault fits that grim chronology. According to statements from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Kyiv city military administration, Russian forces launched a coordinated barrage of missiles and drones in the early hours of August 28. Explosions erupted across several districts, shattering windows, igniting fires, and damaging residential blocks. Ukrainian air‑defence systems responded, firing a “steady stream of anti‑aircraft fire,” but the sheer volume of incoming projectiles overwhelmed the defenses.
Russian officials, meanwhile, claimed the operation achieved its objectives. The Ministry of Defence announced that all designated targets had been “successfully hit.” The statement, however, offered no specifics, and independent analysts have noted that the term “designated targets” often serves as a euphemism for civilian areas that double as infrastructure hubs.
The human toll of the attack, while still being tallied, is already haunting. Families huddled in basements after hearing the sirens recount their harrowing experiences on social media, where videos of falling debris and plumes of smoke have gone viral. International reaction has been swift and condemning. French President Emmanuel Macron described the strikes as “cruel acts of state terrorism,” while U.S. officials echoed the sentiment, labeling the explosions “massive and unacceptable.” United Nations Secretary‑General António Guterres, speaking at a recent Security Council session, called for an immediate de‑escalation and emphasized the need to protect civilians amid “the rain of missiles and drones that have turned cities into front‑line battlefields.”
The Kyiv mayor’s appeal for residents to stay in shelters resonated across platforms from Twitter to Weibo, where the hashtag #UkraineKyivExplosions trended for hours. Users shared footage of the air‑raid alerts, warned neighbors to avoid windows, and debated the authenticity of unverified videos circulating online. The latter point highlighted a growing challenge: misinformation and unconfirmed claims can spread as quickly as the explosions themselves, prompting both Ukrainian authorities and independent fact‑checkers to urge caution.
Behind the headlines, the attacks underscore a broader strategic calculus. Russia’s intensified drone campaign, which has surged in frequency throughout 2025, seeks to exploit gaps in Kyiv’s layered air‑defence network. Ukrainian forces, meanwhile, have bolstered their systems and continue to coordinate with NATO partners for additional support. Yet each successful strike erodes civilian confidence and tests the resilience of a city that has, since 2014, endured protests, revolutions and now a full‑scale war.
The lingering question is how much longer Kyiv can sustain this assault without a significant shift in the conflict’s dynamics. As President Zelenskyy rallies the nation and the international community, the images of smoke‑filled streets and the echo of distant detonations serve as a stark reminder that the war’s most lethal moments are still being lived out in the heart of Ukraine’s capital.
