Local officials say that Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, was hit by the biggest drone attack since Russia’s war began. This happened as Kyiv was getting ready to celebrate the anniversary of its founding on Sunday. At least one person died, but officials said that dozens of drones were shot down, showing how good Ukraine’s air defense is.
Serhii Popko, a top military official in Kyiv, said that Russia used Shahed drones made in Iran to start the “most massive attack” on the city overnight on Saturday. The attack went on for more than five hours, and more than 40 drones were allegedly shot down by air defense.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that a 41-year-old man died and a 35-year-old woman was taken to the hospital after something fell on a seven-story building and started a fire.
Today, 🇺🇦 went through one of the largest 🇷🇺 attacks by Shaheds. During this terrorist attack, the most powerful strike was aimed against the Kyiv region. This is how 🇷🇺 celebrates the day of our ancient Kyiv…
Throughout its history, Kyiv has seen various meannesses from… pic.twitter.com/TbZfnWWFIh
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) May 28, 2023
The building of the Ukrainian Society of the Blind was damaged by things that fell off of a drone. Volodymyr Golubenko, a member of the group, came to get his things on Sunday morning. He was helped by his son Mykola, who looked through the rubble for his father’s things and tried to show him what his office looks like now.
“This wall is broken on the right and the left,” Mykola told his father.
Volodymyr Golubenko worked here for over forty years. He says that many blind people come here to talk and help each other, so it’s like their home. “Even if you don’t have a job, it’s hard to get one now because this war has been going on for a year. “At least they come here to talk,” Volodymyr said.
Many people in his neighborhood heard Shahed drones for the first time, just like Golubenko. Yana, who has three boys and is 36 years old, was one of them. The family hid all night in a hallway.
“Something began to blow up above us. “The kids ran here out of fear,” Yana said.
52 of the 54 drones that were sent into the air were taken out by air defense systems.
The Ukrainian air force said that the number of Shahed drone attacks across the country on Saturday night was also a record. Air defense devices shot down 52 of the 54 drones that were sent into the air. Russia has sent waves of drones to attack Ukraine, but most of them are shot down. This month, Ukraine also said that it had shot down some of Russia’s hypersonic Kinzhal missiles. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that these missiles give Russia a key competitive edge.
Oleh Syniehubov, the governor of the northeastern Kharkiv province, said that a 61-year-old woman and a 60-year-old man died in two different shelling attacks. Kyiv Day is the official date of when the city was founded. Usually, the day is marked by live music, street fairs, exhibitions, and fireworks. This year, which was the city’s 1,541st birthday, there were going to be less big celebrations.
Ukrainian officials said it was likely not a coincidence that the drone strikes happened at the times they did.
Andriy Yermak, Ukraine’s top presidential aide, said on Telegram, “The history of Ukraine has long been a source of irritation for the insecure Russians.” “Today, the enemy decided to use their deadly unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to ‘congratulate’ the people of Kyiv on Kyiv Day,” Popko also wrote on the messaging app.
