Russia's 28-missile barrage on Kyiv kills 17 as Ukraine intercepts zero missiles amid Patriot shortage
Russia fired 28 high-speed missiles and 115 drones at Kyiv overnight on Aug 4-5, 2026, killing at least 17 people and wounding 44. Ukraine's air force intercepted 98 drones but not a single missile, exposing a critical shortage of Patriot interceptors that Zelensky says could have saved lives.
Overnight barrage on Kyiv
Russia launched 28 high-speed missiles and 115 drones against Kyiv and its surrounding region in the overnight attack of Aug 4-5, 2026, according to the Ukrainian air force. At least 17 people were killed and 44 wounded, President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed. The strikes targeted civilian infrastructure including a brewery, a warehouse, a mail-sorting office, and logistics centres of major retailers. At least six powerful explosions were heard in the city after the military administration declared an air raid alert citing the threat of ballistic weapons.
Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported that air defense forces were operational in the capital and the surrounding region, with additional missiles inbound. The Russian military fired from the directions of Kursk, Millerovo, Orel, Donetsk, and Hvardiiske in annexed Crimea.
- Drones launched
- 115
- Drones shot down
- 98
- Missiles launched
- 28
- Missiles shot down
- 0
Zero missiles intercepted
The Ukrainian air force said it shot down 98 of the 115 drones but could not down a single Russian missile. The missiles used included ground-launched Iskander-M ballistic missiles and hypersonic Zircon missiles, which travel at several times the speed of sound and dive steeply toward their targets. Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat stated that the Patriot system is currently the only system in Ukrainian service able to intercept the Russian Iskander-M, S-400, and Zircon missiles.
Thomas Withington, an electronic warfare expert at the Royal United Services Institute, described the physics of interception by comparing it to playing catch.
He added that if the ball is going really fast, it is harder to catch. The PAC-3 Patriot system uses a maneuverable interceptor designed to collide with an incoming warhead, but Ukraine has only a handful of batteries and faces a critical shortage of interceptors.It's very, very steep and it's going at a ridiculous speed.
Zelensky's plea and Trump's refusal
Zelensky said missile interception systems could have saved the lives of those killed and urged partners to understand the consequences of delay.
The missile interception systems could have saved the lives of those who were killed today.
He added that it is fundamental for partners to understand that delays in supplying such systems, or reluctance to provide them, directly lead to human losses and terrible destruction.
According to the Financial Times, citing anonymous sources familiar with the talks, Donald Trump rejected Zelensky's request for hundreds of new Patriot interceptor missiles at a White House meeting the previous week. Trump reportedly said the Patriots are necessary to defend US interests in the Middle East and the Persian Gulf. He had initially authorized Kyiv to produce the interceptors but later expressed reservations, stating last week that Washington must exercise a great deal of caution before making a decision. The shortage has been exacerbated by the war between the United States and Iran.
- 2024 (full year)
- Estimated 200 to 300 ballistic missiles used over the entire year missiles
- 2026-07
- Approximately 126 ballistic missiles used in July alone missiles
Russian missile production surge
According to military analysts cited by Le Parisien, Russia has dramatically increased its ballistic missile usage. The country went from an estimated 200 to 300 missiles over the entire year of 2024 to approximately 126 for the single month of July 2026. Zelensky has been regularly alerting allies since January that Ukraine faces a critical shortage of PAC-3 missiles to counter Russia's increased use of ballistic missiles. Ukraine intercepts the majority of Russian drones using domestically developed technologies but depends on Western deliveries to counter ballistic missiles.
Strikes and counterstrikes beyond Kyiv
A Russian Molniya drone struck the area of the regional children's hospital in Zaporizhzhia, damaging the facade and shattering windows. Ivan Fedorov, head of the regional military administration, reported that all children and medical staff were in shelters when the air raid alert sounded, so there were no casualties.
On the Russian side, falling drone debris sparked a fire in an industrial zone of Ufa, the capital of Bashkortostan and a major oil-refining hub. Governor Radiy Khabirov said on Telegram that an attack targeting unspecified enterprises had been repelled and that the fire was being extinguished. Russian authorities said air defenses intercepted 475 Ukrainian drones across 16 different regions overnight. In Tula, 200 kilometres from Moscow, a Wildberries warehouse, described as the Amazon of Russia, was again attacked. The Russian strikes on Kyiv came in the wake of a 40-day Ukrainian campaign of attacks on Russian soil that began on June 25, targeting logistics centres and refineries inside Russia.
