Kyiv, Ukraine – At least seven people were killed and more than 80 others wounded on Monday as Russian drones targeted a range of civilian infrastructure across Ukraine’s capital and other cities, Ukrainian officials reported.
Among the most significant impacts was a strike on the National Academy of Sciences in Kyiv’s historic centre. A high-speed drone smashed into the building, which is located near the German embassy and several key government institutions, killing one woman and injuring several others. Witnesses described staff fleeing the structure via firefighters’ ladders as flames engulfed parts of the building.
The attacks also affected Dobrobut Hospital and a private medical centre in central Kyiv, with rescue workers seen evacuating injured patients and extinguishing fires. Additional damage was reported at apartment blocks, offices, petrol stations, and data centres across the city.
Mayor Vitali Klitschko condemned the strikes as “pure terror,” stating that they are designed to disrupt daily life and break civilian morale. Beyond Kyiv, a strike on an office centre in Dnipro killed three people, while dozens were wounded in attacks on Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, and Odesa.
Moscow maintains that its operations are focused on military-related sites. However, Ukraine accuses Russia of conducting systematic attacks on civilians and critical infrastructure to cripple the economy and force concessions amid stalled peace negotiations for the four-and-a-half-year war between the two nations.
Moscow denies targeting civilians, yet the evidence is everywhere. If these strikes continue, what legal mechanisms actually hold them accountable?
I’m shocked by the sheer scale of injuries—over eighty wounded is devastating. Why aren’t international sanctions being enforced immediately after this?
It breaks my heart that a historic academy and hospitals are targeted. Civilians must never be the focus of such calculated strikes.