More Russian 'Kamikaze Drones' Strikes Hit Kyiv, Ukraine Says

Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, was struck in the early hours of Monday morning with more Russian "kamikaze drones," officials said, a week after Russian strikes caused multiple civilian casualties nationwide.

Andriy Yermak, head of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's office, said in a statement that Monday morning's attacks in Kyiv came from so-called kamikaze drones, also known as Iranian Shahed drones.

Multiple explosions rang out in Kyiv, with loud blasts echoing through the center in the city. The first explosion was reported at around 6:35 a.m. local time.

Vitali Klitschko, Kyiv's mayor, said that there had been at least two explosions in the Shevchenkivskiy neighborhood, located in the center of the city.

The mayor said a fire broke out in a non-residential building in the district, and that emergency services were at the scene.

"The explosion in the Shevchenkiv district—in the center of the capital. All services follow in place. Details later. The air alert continues. Stay in shelters! We are clarifying the information about the casualties," he said.

The district was hit by Russian explosions on October 10, exactly a week ago. At least 19 people were killed in the attacks on Monday, and more than 100 others were wounded.

Zelensky said last week that Russia used Iranian-supplied Shahed drones in those attacks, as well as its own missiles.

Yermak called for "more air defense systems" and "as soon as possible."

He said: "We need more weapons to defend the sky and destroy the enemy."

Strikes have also been reported in Ukraine's Sumy Oblast, with casualties reported in the Dnepropetrovsk region, and in the southern city of Mykolaiv, according to Ukraine's military.

According to Dmitry Zhivitsky, the head of the Sumy region's military administration, Russian forces launched a missile attack on critical infrastructure facilities in the Romny district.

Valentin Reznichenko, the head of the military administration of the Dnepropetrovsk region, said that Russian forces had been shelling the area all night. He said Ukraine's air defense shot down three cruise missiles, while another missile hit an energy infrastructure facility, causing a fire.

Yuriy Ignat, spokesperson for the command of the Ukrainian Air Force, said that 26 so-called kamikaze drones were destroyed overnight in the south of the country, local news outlet Ukrainska Pravda reported.

Putin justified last week's attacks by saying they were in response to an October 8 explosion on the strategically vital Kerch Strait Bridge that connects Russia's mainland to the annexed Crimean Peninsula.

The Kremlin's principal security agency, the Federal Security Service (FSB), claimed on October 12 that the explosion had been planned by Ukrainian military intelligence for months.

Ukrainian authorities have not claimed responsibility for the incident.

According to Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko, about 30 percent of Ukraine's energy infrastructure was hit by missile strikes in a day and a half as a result of last week's strikes.

Zelensky responded to this morning's attacks in a statement on Telegram.

"All night and all morning, the enemy terrorizes the civilian population. Kamikaze drones and missiles are attacking all of Ukraine. A residential building was hit in Kyiv," he wrote.

"The enemy can attack our cities, but it won't be able to break us. The occupiers will get only fair punishment and condemnation of future generations. And we will get victory."

Newsweek has contacted Russia's foreign ministry for comment.