Russia launches nearly 700 air assets at Kyiv region in overnight attack
OAN Staff Addie Davis
12:53 PM – Sunday, May 24, 2026
Russian forces launched a barrage of drones and missiles against the Ukrainian capital, killing several and injuring dozens more, in what was described as one of the largest attacks on the city since war broke out four years ago.
Nearly 100 people were injured throughout the country, and four have died in the overnight attack, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who posted to social media on Sunday. He said the bulk of the attack was directed at Kyiv, where about 30 residential buildings were damaged or destroyed, as well as other sites like the Chornobyl Museum and the National Art Museum.
World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the WHO office in Kyiv was hit by debris, damaging windows on the 3rd floor, also noting the building hosts other United Nations (UN) agencies as well.
“Attacks on health and civilians MUST STOP,” Ghebreyesus posted to X. “We urge once again for a ceasefire. Peace is the best medicine.”
UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine Matthias Schmale said the attack lasted seven hours, according to a social media post by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Ukraine.
“Like all residents of Kyiv, my UN colleagues and I were yet again woken up in the middle of the night by the terrifying loud sounds of war,” Schmale said. “Homes and markets were hit, as shattered debris sparked fires across the city.”
Many world leaders took to social media to condemn the strikes, including French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
“France condemns this attack and the use of the Oreshnik ballistic missile, which above all signal a kind of headlong rush and the impasse of Russia’s war of aggression,” Macron said.
“In the night leading into Pentecost Sunday, Russia massively attacked civilian targets in Ukraine. Once again, the Oreschnik missile system was deployed in the process. The Federal Government sharply condemns this reckless escalation. Germany continues to stand firmly at Ukraine’s side,” Merz stated.
There were reports that the Oreshnik missile, a Russian intermediate-range ballistic missile, struck a city near Kyiv. According to the Kyiv Post, Colonel Yurii Ihnat, head of the communications department for the Ukrainian Air Force Command, confirmed the use of the weapon, which struck the city of Bila Tserkva in the Kyiv region.
The Ukrainian Air Force announced that Russia launched 690 air attack assets, including 600 drones and nearly a hundred various missiles. The military force claimed that Ukrainian defenses destroyed or suppressed 604 of these.
Before the attack, the United States Embassy in Kyiv issued a warning on Saturday of a “potentially significant air attack” that could occur over the next 24 hours. It recommended that U.S. citizens be prepared, as always, to immediately take shelter if an air alert is announced. The “Level 4: Do Not Travel” designation by the U.S. State Department remains on Ukraine.
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