Russia launched one of its largest missile and drone attacks against Kyiv early Sunday, killing at least six people and injuring dozens more, Ukrainian officials said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the barrage largely targeted the capital and involved more than 40 missiles and 120 attack drones.
Overnight, Russia carried out one of its largest ballistic missile attacks on Kyiv. The enemy launched more than 40 missiles of various types – most of them against the capital – and 120 attack drones.
As of now, one person has been reported killed in Kyiv and the region, and 16… pic.twitter.com/YMWDlB6wGA
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 19, 2026
Images from Kyiv showed large craters and damaged buildings. A three-story building in the central Shevchenkivskyi district caught fire, where rescuers recovered one body and pulled several people from the rubble.
russias overnight attack on Ukraine’s capital has caused destruction across multiple districts:
• A 9-story residential building & an office building were hit in Solomianskyi.
• A 3-story building & more than 10 cars burned in Shevchenkivskyi & many apartment windows blown out. pic.twitter.com/myTr9Xbdz7— Їne Back Їversen (@IneBackIversen) July 19, 2026
Ukraine’s air force said it intercepted or neutralized 126 targets, including 18 missiles and 108 drones, but 23 missiles and 10 drones struck 20 locations. The barrage included Iskander-M ballistic missiles and Zircon hypersonic missiles.
On the night of July 19, Russia launched a massive air attack. The aggressor used 166 air attack assets: 10 Zircon missiles, 25 Iskander-M/S-400 ballistic missiles, 3 Onyx anti-ship missiles, 3 Kh-59/Kh-69 guided air-to-surface missiles and 125 enemy UAVs.
Ukrainian air… pic.twitter.com/Jyw9vsBZtV
— Ukrainian Air Force (@KpsZSU) July 19, 2026
Reports on the casualties varied. The Associated Press reported at least six people killed in the Russian strikes. It said a missile attack on a postal facility near Kharkiv killed three people and wounded at least 20. The report added that Russian guided bombs also struck Kherson and Sumy, killing at least one person in each city.
The BBC reported a higher toll, saying the missile and drone attacks killed at least eight people and injured dozens. It reported that four people were killed in the northeastern city of Kharkiv, an elderly woman died in Kyiv, two others were killed in Zaporizhzhia, and one person was killed in Sumy.
The strikes came as Moscow has intensified its use of ballistic missiles in recent weeks, targeting Ukrainian cities and infrastructure amid Kyiv’s continued attacks on Russian oil facilities that have contributed to fuel shortages inside Russia.
Ukraine has repeatedly warned of shortages in its air defense capabilities, particularly Patriot missile systems supplied by the U.S., which are among the few systems capable of intercepting Russian ballistic missiles.
Earlier this month, U.S. President Donald Trump said he is prepared to allow Ukraine to produce Patriot systems under license, though officials have not provided details on timing or production capacity.
Later on Sunday, Ukraine reported that Russia had launched a missile strike on the civilian bulk carrier Golden Leo, calling it “another act of maritime terrorism.”
#BREAKING Another foreign-flagged vessel takes a direct hit from a Russian missile in Odesa port. Enormous fire – the strike appears to have landed squarely on the bridge. No firefighting equipment in sight. Appears planned and targeted. Ships are being picked off like flies on a… pic.twitter.com/Fs7UBayqxD
— Michael Bociurkiw (@WorldAffairsPro) July 19, 2026
According to Ukraine’s navy, Russian forces struck the Guinea-Bissau-flagged vessel, owned by a Turkish company, with three Kh-59/Kh-69 cruise missiles as it departed the combat zone carrying a grain shipment.
Rusya Türk kargo gemisine saldırdı…
Beş kişi öldü…
Ruslar, sivil kargo gemisi GOLDEN LEO’ya üç adet Kh-59/Kh-69 füzesiyle saldırdı.
Gemi ağır hasar aldı, batabilir… pic.twitter.com/ESOMxm6Avi— Adelina Sfishta (@AdelinaSfishta) July 19, 2026
Five people were killed, while the fate of five other crew members remained unknown. Search operations are ongoing.
