At least 13 killed in Kyiv as Ukraine grapples with air defence shortages

At least 13 people have been killed and 40 injured in the latest Russian strikes targeting the Ukrainian capital, Ukraine’s prime minister said, as Kyiv continues to face a shortage of air defence missiles.

Apartment blocks and warehouses were struck across the city overnight, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (DSNS) said, while a children’s hospital and school were also damaged.

The Russian defence ministry said it used air, land and sea-based weapons to target military facilities and warehouses.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the deaths were the result of a shortage of air defence missiles, which Kyiv relies on western allies to supply.

Writing on Telegram, he said “as long as Ukraine does not have enough anti-ballistics, Russia will not seriously think about peace”.

He added: “The interceptors for the Patriots have not yet been replaced, and they are needed every day. Each additional missile saves the lives of our people.”

Ukraine has relied on American supplies of Patriot interceptor missiles to combat Russian ballistic missiles, but the US has used much of its stockpile during the war in the Middle East and has been supplying Ukraine with less.

An update released by the Ukrainian Air Force on Thursday morning implied that none of the Russian ballistic missiles used overnight were intercepted.

Ukrainian MP Oleksiy Goncharenko told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that his country “can’t do anything” without the interceptors, describing cities as “absolutely unprotected” from ballistic missile attacks.

He continued: “Russia is using this trying to destroy as much infrastructure as possible.

“For us it’s very painful because we are dying here every day without these interceptors.”

Zelensky’s renewed plea for more military aid came as he faced a direct political challenge from the popular ex-defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov, who has called for an election and launched a scathing attack on the government by claiming corruption has deprived the military of weapons.

The latest strikes on Kyiv began around midnight local time as air raid sirens sounded across the city, followed by the impact of around 20 Russian missiles.

The strikes cut power to thousands of properties, plunging parts of the Kyiv region into darkness.

A day of mourning for those killed overnight was declared on Friday.