Russia Launches Overnight Drone and Bomb Attacks Across Ukraine – Kyiv Among Areas Threatened

Russia launched another wave of aerial attacks against Ukraine overnight Friday, Oct. 9, sending drones toward the Kyiv region and southern Ukraine while its aircraft launched guided bombs toward eastern regions – extending a deadly assault that President Volodymyr Zelensky said had killed 78 people and injured 215 in recent days. The renewed attacks came hours after a Russian guided bomb struck two passenger buses in Kramatorsk, eastern Ukraine, killing at least 33 civilians and wounding 18 in one of the deadliest attacks on Ukrainian civilians this year.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. The Kramatorsk strike followed Wednesday’s Russian missile attack on a residential building in Pryluky, Chernihiv region, which killed 22 people, including five children, and injured 54. Zelensky condemned the escalating attacks as “terror directed against people and life,” warning that the international community could not ignore the mounting civilian death toll. New overnight attacks threaten Kyiv and eastern Ukraine According to warnings issued by the Ukrainian Air Force, Russian drones were detected moving through several regions Thursday evening and into the early hours of Friday. Shortly after midnight, the Air Force warned of a Russian drone near the border of Kyiv and Chernihiv regions, moving eastward. Earlier in the evening, Russian drones had been reported moving through the Kherson region and approaching Odesa from the Black Sea. At approximately 12:11 a.m. Friday, Russian aircraft launched guided aerial bombs toward Kharkiv and Donetsk regions, according to the Air Force. Other Topics of Interest Zelensky Says Ukraine Is Aware of US-Russia Economic Discussions His remarks came after reports said that Jared Kushner and Kirill Dmitriev discussed bringing a US investor into the Nord Stream pipelines. Another alert at around 1:09 a.m. reported guided bombs heading toward Sumy region. Kramatorsk massacre – passenger buses hit in Russian bombing The renewed assault followed Thursday’s devastating Russian strike on Kramatorsk, where a guided aerial bomb hit two passenger buses operating in the city. The attack occurred around 10 a.m. on Yuvileina Street, leaving burned-out vehicles, shattered debris and bodies scattered across the roadway. At least 33 people were killed and 18 wounded, according to later reports from local authorities. Some victims were so badly injured that they could not immediately be identified. As Kyiv Post reported, Donetsk Regional Military Administration head Vadym Filashkin said Russian forces deliberately targeted civilians. For Russian forces, Filashkin said, a crowded passenger bus offered the opportunity to kill large numbers of people with a single strike. The bombing forced authorities to suspend public transportation in both Kramatorsk and neighboring Sloviansk, leaving residents of the two frontline cities facing further restrictions on movement as Russian strikes intensified. The attack was not the first time Russian forces had targeted civilian vehicles in Kramatorsk. On Sept. 13, a Russian strike on a vehicle traveling through the city center killed two people and injured four others. Kramatorsk remains one of Ukraine’s most important administrative and logistics centers in the Donetsk region and a frequent target of Russian aerial attacks as Moscow continues its offensive in eastern Ukraine. Zelensky: Russia’s attack will not go unanswered Zelensky condemned the Kramatorsk bombing and warned that the death toll could rise further. “This strike will not go unanswered,” he said Thursday. The president said Moscow was seeking to destroy civilian life across Donbas and called for a forceful international response to the killings. Zelensky criticized Washington’s pursuit of economic cooperation with Moscow while Russia continued killing Ukrainian civilians. “One cannot, on the one hand, negotiate with the Russians about future economic projects, whilst on the other hand say that we find ourselves in some sort of … diplomatic stalemate,” he said during a visit to Pryluky on Thursday. His comments came as Ukrainian negotiators prepared to visit the US on Oct. 9-10 for further discussions with American officials and European partners. Zelensky has repeatedly urged Ukraine’s allies to expand air defense assistance and increase pressure on Moscow to stop its attacks. Pryluky – five children among 22 killed The Kramatorsk massacre came just one day after a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile struck a five-story apartment building in Pryluky on Wednesday, Oct. 7, killing 22 people, including five children. The strike injured another 54 people and damaged more than 100 residential buildings, as well as schools, kindergartens, shops and other civilian infrastructure. On Thursday, Zelensky visited Pryluky alongside British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, meeting survivors and emergency workers at the scene of the destruction. Seventeen people remained hospitalized, including a five-year-old girl. The visit came as Britain announced £54 million (approximately $71 million) in additional winter energy and humanitarian assistance for Ukraine, alongside new sanctions against Russia. The assistance is intended to help Ukraine repair damaged energy systems, maintain heating and water supplies and protect vulnerable communities ahead of winter. From frontline cities to western Ukraine, Russia’s relentless attacks continue to endanger civilians across the country more than four years into its full-scale invasion. Deliberately targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure constitutes a war crime under international humanitarian law. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 90% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.