Russian ballistic strikes kill three in Kyiv, leave over 600,000 without power across Ukraine
Russian ballistic missile strikes on Kyiv on October 13–14 killed three people and injured at least 22, including a child, as a large-scale attack on Ukraine's energy infrastructure left more than 600,000 people without electricity nationwide.
According to Ukraine's State Emergency Service, two people were killed and 21 injured when a missile struck a nine-story residential building in Kyiv's Desnianskyi district. Firefighters extinguished a 400-square-meter (4,300-square-foot) blaze, while rescue workers evacuated 16 residents.
Another person was killed and one injured when a nonresidential building was hit in the Holosiivskyi district. Fires were also reported in several other parts of the capital.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said Russian ballistic missiles targeted energy facilities in Kyiv and the surrounding region, triggering emergency power outages across several districts of the capital.
More than 600,000 without electricity
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia launched 39 ballistic missiles and more than 120 attack drones and loitering munitions overnight, primarily targeting energy and critical infrastructure.
According to Zelenskyy, the strikes damaged 26 components of Ukraine's electricity infrastructure and four oil and gas facilities. More than 600,000 people were without power, and he warned that further outages were possible.
One of the main targets was Kyiv's CHPP-4 combined heat and power plant, a major energy facility serving the capital.
Kyiv reports another attack without advance warning
The latest strikes also raised questions about the advance warning Ukraine receives from its Western partners.
For the second consecutive evening, Russian ballistic missiles were detected only as they approached Kyiv, with explosions occurring before an air raid alert could be issued.
Ukraine's Air Force confirmed that it had received no advance notification from partners about the launches. The circumstances are being investigated.
A similar incident occurred on October 12. Politico subsequently reported, citing an official familiar with the matter, that the United States had attributed the failure to provide advance warning to adverse weather conditions.
US President Donald Trump, however, said on October 13 that Washington had not stopped sharing intelligence with Ukraine.
Zelenskyy calls for US pressure on Russia
Zelenskyy accused Moscow of deliberately targeting energy infrastructure despite a US-proposed energy ceasefire that Ukraine had supported.
He described the attack as an unprecedented display of Russian disrespect toward the United States, arguing that Moscow did not regard statements by the American president as sufficiently forceful.
The Ukrainian president urged Trump to impose tougher sanctions on Russia and provide additional Patriot air defense missiles.
"The American president has all the powerful and sufficient tools to bring peace closer through strength, justice, and pressure on the aggressor," Zelenskyy said.
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