VLADIMIR Putin launched a massive blitz targeting Ukraine’s capital city Kyiv in one of the war’s heaviest airstrikes.
Reportedly, at least 14 individuals sustained injuries as a result of a significant aerial assault involving 250 drones and 14 missiles, orchestrated by Russian forces.
Massive fires were seen raging in Kyiv’s skyline after the heavy blitz.
Plumes of smoke were seen billowing from civilian buildings in Ukraine’s night sky.
The air raid alert in Kyiv lasted more than seven hours overnight, warning of incoming missiles and drones.
A fire broke out in apartments on the third and fourth floors of a five-storey residential building in the Solomianskyi district.
Another fire broke out on the balconies of a nine-storey building in the Obolonskyi district, Pravada reports.
Emergency workers and Kyiv’s fire teams were seen working to rescue people from the targeted sites.
The air blitz came just hours after Russia and Ukraine began a major prisoner exchange, swapping hundreds of soldiers and civilians.
The aftermath of the attack saw remnants from intercepted missiles and drones dispersing over four urban areas within the Ukrainian capital, as confirmed by Tymur Tkachenko, the acting head of Kyiv military administration.
According to Tkachenko, six people required medical care after the attack, and two fires were sparked in the Solomianskyi district of Kyiv.
The State Emergency Service said: “Information on possible casualties is being confirmed.”
Kyiv’s mayor Vitalii Klitschko warned residents of more than 20 Russian strike drones heading towards the city.
As the attack continued, he said drone debris fell on a shopping mall and a residential building in the Obolon district of Kyiv.
Local resident Yurii Bondarchuk said the air raid siren started as usual, then the drones started to fly around as they constantly do.
Moments later, he heard a boom and saw shattered glass fly through the air.
The balcony was totally wiped out, as well as the windows and the doors, he said, describing the damage to his apartment.
The prisoner swap on Friday was the first phase of a complicated deal involving the exchange of 1,000 prisoners from both Russia and Ukraine.
It will be the largest prisoners and civilians swap since the start of the war.
Scenes of crying and skinny Ukrainian soldiers being returned home after imprisonment have been seen before.
Swaps have gone ahead throughout the war, with each side releasing footage of bitter-sweet reunions.
Following the recent direct discussions between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul, President Donald Trump expressed optimism that this exchange could mark the initial phase towards a potential peace agreement.
Hailing the swap deal, he wrote on Truth Social: “A major prisoners swap was just completed between Russia and Ukraine.
“It will go into effect shortly. Congratulations to both sides on this negotiation. This could lead to something big???”
President Volodymyr Zelensky said the first phase brought home 390 Ukrainians, with further releases expected over the weekend
Russia’s Defence Ministry said it received the same number of prisoners and civilians from Ukraine who were then taken to Belarus for medical treatment.
The swap is understood to have taken place at the border with Belarus in northern Ukraine.
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said last night that Moscow would give Ukraine a draft document outlining its conditions for a sustainable, long-term, comprehensive peace agreement once the ongoing prisoner exchange had finished.
But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there has been no agreement yet on the venue for the next round of talks to end the fighting as diplomatic manoeuvring continued.
Meanwhile, European leaders have accused Putin of dragging his feet in peace efforts while he tries to press his larger army’s battlefield initiative and capture more Ukrainian land.
