Russia Strikes Kyiv With Missiles, Drones; 11 Dead
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- Russia launched waves of missiles and drones at Kyiv early Monday, killing at least 11 and wounding 60, days after a separate strike killed 31 in the capital — the deadliest day of the year for Kyiv.
- Ukraine's Air Force said Russia fired hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles overnight, with 29 ballistic missiles striking their targets, a shortfall spokesman Yurii Ihnat tied to a 'serious deficit' of interceptor missiles.
- Zelenskyy, speaking ahead of a NATO summit in Ankara, blamed the gap on Middle East demand draining Patriot stockpiles and directly urged U.S. and European partners to bolster Ukraine's air defense, saying interceptor shortages let Russia 'vanquish' residential buildings.
- Ukraine struck an oil refinery in Russia's Yaroslavl, causing a fire per independent outlet Astra, while also cutting power across Russian-occupied Crimea in attacks the Moscow-installed head of Sevastopol acknowledged.
- Russia's Defense Ministry said it downed 519 Ukrainian drones overnight and claimed Monday's barrage targeted weapons factories, drone-production sites, armored vehicle plants, and air defense repair facilities in Kyiv — claims AP could not independently verify.
- The United Nations has documented more than 16,000 Ukrainian civilians killed since the full-scale invasion began, a toll underscored by Monday's hits on residential high-rises in Kyiv's Podilskyi and Darnytsia districts.
Why it matters: The attack shows Russia's escalation is directly fueled by Ukraine's air-defense gaps: 29 ballistic missiles reached their targets untouched because the Middle East war is draining the finite global supply of Patriot interceptors, and with NATO convening in Ankara, Ukraine's lobbying for more missile defense is now the most actionable item on the agenda — measured in residential high-rises still standing.