Russia launches fresh wave of strikes on Ukraine, 3 killed

Sharing details of the strikes, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on X: “Emergency services are working at the sites of the Russian strikes that took place this morning and last night. In Kyiv, the fires were quickly extinguished, and emergency work is now ongoing.”

Zelenskyy said six people were injured in Russian attacks on Kyiv.

He added that the cities of Kremenchuk and Kryvyi Rih were also targeted with ballistic missiles.

Speaking about the casualties, Zelenskyy said: “Wherever the Russians can reach with their ballistic missiles, they strike civilian infrastructure. In Kryvyi Rih, two people were killed and 14 others were injured.”

He said one person was killed in Sumy.

Zelenskyy also said 13 regions across Ukraine had come under attack this week.

“The enemy launched more than 1,550 attack drones, nearly 1,560 guided aerial bombs, and 62 missiles at our cities and communities, most of them ballistic missiles of various types,” he said.

Russia reports hundreds of drones intercepted
Meanwhile, Russian authorities said air defence forces had shot down 201 drones approaching Moscow.

“From yesterday evening until 6:30 Moscow time, 600 UAVs were flying toward the Moscow region, 201 of which were destroyed in the Moscow region,” Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin wrote on the Max platform, as quoted by RIA Novosti.

According to media reports, three people were injured in the Moscow Ring Road area and were receiving medical assistance.

Ukraine sees highest civilian casualties in July since March 2022
The latest attacks come amid a sharp rise in civilian casualties in Ukraine.

Civilian casualties reached their highest monthly level in July, with more people killed and injured than in any month since March 2022, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU) said recently.

Investigators verified that at least 437 civilians were killed and 2,610 injured last month, marking a “new high” in casualties this year. The figure represented a 30 per cent increase compared with June and a 70 per cent rise compared with July 2025.

“Every month this year the number of killed and injured civilians has increased. That trend accelerated sharply in July. The number of civilian casualties in July was the highest we documented in a single month since March 2022,” said Danielle Bell, chief of the HRMMU.

During the first seven months of 2026, investigators verified 12,477 civilian casualties resulting from conflict-related violence, including 1,830 killed and 10,638 injured.

The toll represented a 44 per cent increase compared with the same period in 2025, when 1,434 people were killed and 7,216 injured, and more than double the number recorded during the same period in 2024, when 1,188 people were killed and 4,560 injured.

Kyiv among hardest-hit cities

Ukraine’s capital Kyiv was among the hardest-hit cities in July, with at least 54 civilians killed and 202 injured as Russian forces significantly increased their use of ballistic and cruise missiles.

Russia launched at least 429 missiles in July, more than double the number recorded in June, with many striking Kyiv.

The deadliest attack of the month occurred on July 2, when at least 30 civilians were killed and 104 injured after Russian forces launched 74 missiles and nearly 500 long-range drones, mainly targeting Kyiv.

The HRMMU also said reported civilian casualties in Russia increased in July, with Russian authorities reporting 79 civilians killed and 601 injured.

However, UN monitors were unable to independently verify those figures due to a lack of access and limited information.

Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the UN has verified at least 16,874 civilian deaths, including 820 children, and 51,173 injuries, including 3,126 children.

The conflict is now in its fifth year, with no diplomatic solution in sight.