Russian Attack On Ukraine’s Kyiv Region Kills At Least 37 People
A Russian drone strike on an ammunition warehouse in the village of Myla, west of Kyiv, triggered massive explosions and fires that swept through dozens of nearby homes on Friday night, killing 37 people in the deadliest single attack of the war so far this year. The strike came amid three days of near-constant Russian bombardment of Kyiv and the surrounding region, which Ukrainian officials say is a deliberate tactic to overwhelm air defences through sheer volume of attacks. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the deaths as the result of "terrible negligence" by those who stored explosives beside residential areas, in breach of Ukrainian law, and said criminal proceedings had been opened.
Local officials said the blast damaged at least 50 residential buildings and that 34 of the dead were residents of a nearby care home for elderly and disabled people; more than 370 people were evacuated. The toll surpassed the 31 killed in a July strike on Kyiv, previously the year's deadliest, and echoes a similar ammunition-depot explosion in Vyshneve in July that killed 22, prompting the prime minister to warn that lessons had not been learned. Russia's defence ministry said it had targeted drone components and missile-related facilities in the Kyiv region, while separate strikes on the southern Kherson region killed two people and wounded 27, amid warnings that Russia is increasingly deploying jet-powered drones.
In short
- Russian drone hit an ammunition warehouse in Myla, near Kyiv, killing 37
- Deadliest attack of the war this year; 34 victims lived in a care home
- Zelenskyy blames negligent storage of munitions near homes, opens criminal case
Explained simply
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, and Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, has repeatedly faced Russian missile and drone attacks. Ukraine uses air defences to intercept them, while Russian forces have continued strikes on the city and nearby areas.
The people involved include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and local officials, who oversee the response and have raised questions about the storage of explosives near homes. Russia says its forces target military-related facilities; Ukrainian authorities have opened criminal proceedings over the reported storage of ammunition beside residential areas.
The wider conflict affects civilians as well as military sites, and attacks around Kyiv can damage homes and force people to flee. Explosions at ammunition stores have also raised questions in Ukraine about safety rules and how they are enforced.