Russian strikes kill 12 across Ukraine as Kyiv air defenses intercept 135 of 151 drones overnight

Overnight strikes on Kyiv and region

Russian drone and missile strikes across Ukraine killed at least 12 people and wounded over 80 overnight on Saturday, 8 August, according to regional authorities. In the Brovary district northeast of Kyiv, multiple Russian drones destroyed a home in the village of Puchiwka, killing two grandparents and their 3-year-old grandson. Three other family members, including the child's parents and 15-year-old brother, and a neighbor who came to their aid were hospitalized with shrapnel wounds and burns. The attack reduced the house to rubble and wrecked outbuildings and cars.

In the city of Kyiv itself, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said a strike involving six ballistic missiles against civilian infrastructure killed at least one person. Fires were reported in two districts, and Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported burning oil tanks in the Obolon district. Reuters witnesses heard several powerful explosions that shook the city centre.

Wider toll across Ukraine

Beyond the capital region, the overnight attacks struck other parts of Ukraine. In the Zaporizhzhia region in the southeast, regional governor Ivan Fedorov said three people were killed and four wounded. A further five people were killed and nearly 50 wounded in the Kharkiv, Donetsk and Kherson regions, according to regional authorities. Ukraine's air force said it downed or intercepted 135 of 151 drones launched by Russia overnight, with the attack also involving six ballistic missiles and other guided missiles.

Air defense shortages and Zelenskyy's appeals

Moscow is exploiting Ukraine's critical shortage of interceptors for the U.S.-made Patriot systems, the sole air defense weapon in Ukraine's arsenal capable of shooting down ballistic missiles. Ukraine's defense ministry said Friday that air defenses shot down around 5,300 drones and missiles last month, just under 60% of the approximately 9,000 attack drones and missiles Russia fired in the same period.

Zelenskyy appealed on X for more sanctions to prevent the production of ballistic missiles, along with anti-ballistic capabilities and interceptor missiles. He has pleaded with countries, especially the U.S., to send more ammunition made scarcer by the Iran war. Failing that, he wants to manufacture Patriot ammunition in Ukraine or secure permission from Elon Musk to use his Starlink satellite system to guide strikes inside Russia targeting missile launchers.

Russian claims and Ukrainian counterstrikes

Russia's defense ministry said its attacks targeted a production facility of Ukrainian arms manufacturer Fire Point, which makes parts and warheads for the Ukrainian "FP-5 Flamingo" cruise missile, as well as a fuel depot. Russia provided no evidence for the claims, and Ukraine says Russia targets civilian areas despite Moscow's insistence that it strikes only military facilities.

In Russia, five people were injured when a fire broke out at the Ilsky Oil Refinery in the southern Krasnodar region due to debris from a falling drone. Ukraine's near-daily long-range drone and missile strikes using domestically developed weapons have battered Russian oil facilities for months, causing a fuel crisis.

Diplomatic front

Separately, Zelenskyy visited Serbia on Saturday, his first trip to the country since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, to meet with President Aleksandar Vučić and Prime Minister Đuro Macut.