Russia launches first large-scale missile attack on Kyiv in over two months

Russia conducted a massive overnight missile and drone assault on Ukraine on November 17, targeting multiple cities and critical infrastructure across the country, including the capital, Kyiv.

Between 6:30 and 7:15 a.m. local time, multiple explosions were reported in Kyiv, marking the first large-scale missile attack on the city in more than two months. In recent weeks, Russia has favored drone strikes to target the Ukrainian capital.

Missile and drone strikes were also reported in Kropyvnytskyi, Rivne, Ivano-Frankivsk, Cherkasy, Dnipro, Vinnytsia, Kryvyi Rih, Odesa, Zaporizhzhia, and the Khmelnytskyi and Volyn oblasts.

According to Ukraine’s Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko, Russia aimed at “power generation and transmission facilities throughout Ukraine,” prompting emergency power outages by the transmission system operator.

In Kyiv’s Pechersk district, debris from a downed drone ignited a fire in a five-story residential building, injuring two people—one hospitalized and another treated at the scene. Additional debris was reported in the city’s Holosiivskyi and Dniprovskyi districts.

Elsewhere, Mykolaiv faced a deadly assault, with two fatalities and six injuries, including two children, as confirmed by regional governor Vitalii Kim. Critical energy infrastructure was also damaged in Vinnytsia and Volyn oblasts, though no casualties were reported in Volyn.