Russian drone and missile strikes result in 2 deaths and 13 injuries in Ukraine

KYIV – Two Ukrainian cities came under attack early Tuesday as Russia launched drones and missiles, resulting in the death of two individuals and leaving at least thirteen others injured, according to Ukrainian officials.

In the southern port city of Odesa, a maternity hospital and residential buildings in the city center were hit, causing damage, as reported by the regional Governor Oleh Kiper. The attack claimed the lives of two individuals and left nine others wounded, as stated by the regional prosecutor’s office.

Furthermore, Kyiv, the capital, also faced the brunt of the attack with four individuals sustaining injuries, according to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko. Throughout the city, explosions could be heard, and drones were spotted hovering in the vicinity for an extended period, as noted by journalists from the Associated Press.

The fresh attacks came hours after Moscow launched almost 500 drones at Ukraine in the biggest overnight drone bombardment in the three-year war. Ukrainian and Western officials have been anticipating a Russian response to Ukraine’s audacious June 1 drone attack on distant Russian air bases.

Plumes of smoke were visible in Kyiv as air defense forces worked to shoot down drones and missiles Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian residents took shelter and slept in metro stations during the hourslong attack. Nina Nosivets, 32, and her 8-month-old son Levko were among them.

“I just try not to think about all this, silently curled up like a mouse, wait until it all passes, the attacks. Distract the child somehow because its probably the hardest thing for him to bear,” she said.

Krystyna Semak, a 37-year-old Kyiv resident, said the explosions frightened her and she ran to the metro at 2 a.m. with her rug.

Russia has been launching a record-breaking number of drones and missiles targeting Ukraine while the two countries continue to swap prisoners of war, the only tangible outcome of recent direct peace talks held in Istanbul. A ceasefire, long sought by Kyiv, remains elusive.

In Kyiv, fires broke out in at least four districts after debris from shot down drones fell on the roofs of residential buildings and warehouses, according to the Kyiv City Military Administration.

Vasyl Pesenko, 25, stood in his kitchen, damaged in the attack.

“I was lying in bed, as always hoping that these Shaheds (drones) would fly past me, and I heard that Shahed (that hit the house),” he said. “I thought that it would fly away, but it flew closer and closer and everything blew away.”