Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

WorldPolitics
19 Jul 2026 • 3:24 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

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Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

At least one person has died and 13 were injured in a major Russian aerial assault on Kyiv this morning, which Ukrainian officials said included a record number of ballistic missile strikes.

The attack on Ukraine’s capital began at 1.30am local time and explosions could be heard across the city for several hours.

The Kyiv government said firefighters were responding to blazes in five different districts after the attack, one of the biggest in recent weeks, hit residential buildings, office and industrial sites, a dormitory and vehicles.

Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said the raid involved “around four dozen” ballistic missiles, the largest number in a single attack since the war began.

The attack on Kyiv comes a day after Ukrainian drone strikes killed at least nine people at warehouses belonging to a major Russian shopping website.

Around 60 people were also injured after two huge warehouses of Russia's major online retailer, Wildberries, were hit by Ukrainian drones overnight, according to Russian officials.

Volodymyr Zelensky said the strikes targeted “significant logistical facilities”, accusing Wildberries of providing equipment for drones and navigation equipment for the Russian military.

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Key Points

  • One dead and 13 injured as Russia pounds Kyiv with ballistic missiles
  • Strikes overnight include largest number of ballistic missiles since war began, Kyiv says
  • New video shows Monaco parcel bomb blast attack on Ukrainian tycoon
  • Zelensky claims attacks on two Russian logistics hubs
  • In full: Russian online retail warehouses hit by Ukraine drones in deadly attack

Russia hits Ukraine with largest ballistic missile attack since war began

07:41 , Adam Withnall

Russia struck Ukraine this morning with the largest number of ballistic missiles in a single attack since the start of its full-scale invasion in 2022, according to Ukraine’s acting foreign minister.

Andrii Sybiha ‌wrote on X: “Russia ⁠unleashed the ‌largest number of ballistic missiles since the ‌start of ‌the war – around four dozen – ⁠in a brutal terrorist attack on the Ukrainian capital, killing and injuring people.

“We ​urge appropriate ‌and ⁠strong responses. We ⁠need devastating pressure on ‌Moscow ​to ‌end this ​terror.”

One dead and 13 injured as Russia pounds Kyiv with ballistic missiles

06:25 , Adam Withnall

Russia has pounded Kyiv with airstrikes overnight that included ballistic missiles, killing one and wounding at least 13 people, according to local officials.

Fires were reported across five districts of the city as the attack damaged residential buildings, office and industrial sites, a dormitory and vehicles, according to Ukraine’s State Emergency Service.

Explosions began to ring out at around 1.30am on Sunday morning and continued for several hours.

An explosion and smoke seen in Kyiv amid a major Russian attack on Sunday 19 July 2026 (Reuters)

Rescue workers pulled four people from a burning private home in the Sviatoshynskyi district, while in the Shevchenkivskyi district they rescued residents from a burning three-story building. A fire in a non-residential building was also contained. One person was later found dead.

Firefighters also responded to blazes in the Solomyanskyi, Desnianskyi and Dnipro districts.

A resident who identified himself as Vlad told Reuters he had been inside his apartment when a blast tore off his balcony door, which smashed him in the head. "My grandmother lives with me, and she can't walk. How could I run away and leave her behind?" he said.

Russia has launched several large-scale attacks on Kyiv in recent weeks as Ukraine faces a shortage of Patriot air defence missiles.

Recap: Ukraine launches devastating drone strikes on Russian shopping website warehouses

05:40 , Adam Withnall

Ukrainian drones struck two sprawling warehouses, one of them just east of Moscow, as part of attacks overnight and on Saturday afternoon that killed nine people and wounded more than 80, Russian officials said.

Kyiv's forces have pressed their relentless aerial campaign against energy infrastructure and military targets inside Russia, aiming to undermine Moscow’s war effort and make Russians feel the consequences of the Kremlin's all-out invasion of Ukraine that is well into its fifth year.

Two sprawling warehouses of Russia's major online retailer, Wildberries, were hit by Ukrainian drones overnight, according to Russian officials — one in the town of Kotovsk in the Tambov region, some 360km (220 miles) from the border with Ukraine, and another in the city of Elektrostal, about 50km (30 miles) east of Moscow.

Smoke billows from the warehouse in Elektrostal, Russia (Social Media/Reuters)

A Ukrainian drone also hit an oil depot in the city of Noginsk, just north of Elektrostal, sparking a fire and prompting evacuations of a nearby maternity hospital and a residential building, according to the governor of the Moscow region, Andrei Vorobyov. Drone debris also hit a kindergarten building, Vorobyov said, sparking a fire that has since been put out.

Seven night shift workers were killed at the warehouse in Kotovsk and 25 others were wounded, Tambov regional Gov. Yevgeny Pervyshov said.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said in a Telegram post on Saturday that Ukrainian long-range strikes hit two “significant logistical facilities in the Moscow and Tambov regions.”

“These facilities were used by the aggressor to supply sanctioned components for the production of drones and navigation equipment,” he wrote. An oil facility was also hit, he said.

One dead as Russia fires ballistic missiles at Kyiv

04:25 , Adam Withnall

Russian missiles hit Kyiv and the surrounding region early on Sunday, killing at least one person and injuring nine others as fires broke out across the city, officials said.

Witnesses ⁠heard a series of powerful explosions ⁠rock the capital, as Ukraine's ​air ⁠force warned ‌of a ballistic missile threat.

Two ​people were injured ‌in the ⁠Kyiv region, according to ⁠the military administration, and warehouses there ‌were ​also damaged.

Fires broke out at a dormitory, a residential block and a supermarket, Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said on the Telegram app.

Several non-residential buildings and warehouses were struck in the attack, while parked cars and office buildings were set on fire in several ‌districts, Klitschko said.

Russia weaponises traditional family values to boost its ‘catastrophic’ birth rate

03:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

Image from: Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

Russia weaponises traditional family values to boost its ‘catastrophic’ birth rate

Putin ‘will never make peace in Ukraine’ – Here’s the reason why

02:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

Despite four grinding years and Ukraine now successfully smashing Russia’s energy infrastructure, Vladimir Putin has no interest in trying to end the war for one key reason, Bill Browder tells Sam Kiley on the ‘World of Trouble’ podcast.

Image from: Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

Putin ‘will never make peace in Ukraine’ – Here’s the reason why

Watch: Smoke billows from Moscow warehouse after deadly Ukrainian attacks

01:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

In full: Russian online retail warehouses hit by Ukraine drones in deadly attack

Sunday 19 July 2026 00:08 , Holly Bancroft

Waves of Ukrainian drone attacks hit Russian oil depots and businesses – including two warehouses for a key online retailer – on Saturday, killing at least nine people.

Kyiv's forces are continuing their relentless aerial campaign against energy infrastructure and military targets inside Russia, aiming to undermine Moscow’s war effort and make Russians feel the consequences of the Kremlin's all-out invasion of Ukraine that is well into its fifth year.

Two sprawling facilities used by major Russian retailer, Wildberries, were hit: one in the town of Kotovsk in the Tambov region, roughly 220 miles from the border with Ukraine, and another one in the city of Elektrostal, about some 30 miles east of Moscow.

Read the full story here:

Image from: Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

Russian warehouses and oil depots crippled by Ukraine drone attack

Ukrainian drones hit warehouses and other sites across Russia

Sunday 19 July 2026 00:07 , Holly Bancroft

Ukrainian drones struck two sprawling warehouses, one of them just east of Moscow, as part of attacks overnight and on Saturday afternoon that killed nine people and wounded more than 80, Russian officials said.

Kyiv's forces have pressed their relentless aerial campaign against energy infrastructure and military targets inside Russia, aiming to undermine Moscow's war effort and make Russians feel the consequences of the Kremlin's all-out invasion of Ukraine that is well into its fifth year.

Two sprawling warehouses of Russia's major online retailer, Wildberries, were hit by Ukrainian drones overnight, according to Russian officials — one in the town of Kotovsk in the Tambov region, some 360 kilometers (220 miles) from the border with Ukraine, and another in the city of Elektrostal, about 50 kilometers (30 miles) east of Moscow.

A Ukrainian drone also hit an oil depot in the city of Noginsk, just north of Elektrostal, sparking a fire and prompting evacuations of a nearby maternity hospital and a residential building, according to the governor of the Moscow region, Andrei Vorobyov.

Drone debris also hit a kindergarten building, Vorobyov said, sparking a fire that has since been put out.

Seven night shift workers were killed at the warehouse in Kotovsk and 25 others were wounded, Tambov regional Gov. Yevgeny Pervyshov said.

A total of 61 people were wounded in the Moscow region, Vorobyov said: 20 sought outpatient care, while 40 others were hospitalized. One person died of their injuries, he said.

One more person was killed and another wounded in a Ukrainian drone attack on Russia's Belgorod region on Saturday afternoon, according to local authorities.

Both warehouses caught fire, Wildberries founder Tatyana Kim said, and the blaze in Kotovsk was put out. Images and footage released by Russian online outlets showed a fire raging at the Elektrostal facility, with massive plumes of smoke towering over it.

A US license could let Ukraine produce Patriot missiles, but it won’t be simple or quick

Sunday 19 July 2026 00:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

US President Donald Trump’s pledge to give Ukraine a license to produce Patriot air-defence systems could mark a major breakthrough for Kyiv, but experts and Ukrainian officials warn that turning the idea into real weapons would likely take years.

Speaking last week alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a Nato summit in Ankara, Turkey, Trump said the United States would allow Ukraine to make the US-designed systems that Kyiv has long sought to shield its cities and infrastructure from Russian missiles and drones.

“We’ll give them the right to make Patriots. We’ll show them how to do it,” Trump said. “I think they can produce them pretty quickly.”

But the statement left open a crucial question: What exactly would Ukraine be allowed to produce?

You can read more below:

Image from: Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

A US license could let Ukraine produce Patriot missiles, but it won’t be simple or quick

Comment: The West is preparing for the wrong post-war Russia

Saturday 18 July 2026 23:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

The West has long assumed pressure would force Russia to moderate or collapse. Both assumptions misunderstand how the Kremlin responds to weakness, says senior policy adviser Dan Sleat.

Image from: Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

The West is preparing for the wrong post-war Russia

Recap: Everything you need to know as nine killed in Ukrainian strikes

Saturday 18 July 2026 22:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

• Russian officials say a Ukrainian drone attack has killed nine people working at warehouses belonging to a major shopping website

• Authorities said the attacks wounded more than 60 employees at the Wildberries warehouses in Kotovsk in the Tambov region, roughly 475km (295 miles) southeast of Moscow, and Elektrostal, about 50 kilometers (some 30 miles) east of Moscow

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a Telegram post on Saturday that Ukrainian long-range strikes hit two "significant logistical facilities in the Moscow and Tambov regions." "These facilities were used by the aggressor to supply sanctioned components for the production of drones and navigation equipment," he wrote. An oil facility was also hit, he said

• Meanwhile, President Zelensky is facing protests at home over his decision to sack Mykhailo Fedorov, a 35-year-old tech wizard who has been partly credited with Ukraine's recent successes in the war with Russia

Comment: Putin is a ‘cornered rat’ – here’s why that’s bad news for Ukraine – and us

Saturday 18 July 2026 21:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

For the first time in years of war, the Russian regime looks as if it is on the verge of an internal split as the Kremlin’s political managers struggle to reconcile the voracious military need for money with maintaining social and economic stability. But there is extreme danger when an opponent is backed into a corner, writes Owen Matthews.

Image from: Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

Putin is a ‘cornered rat’ – here’s why that’s bad news for Ukraine – and us

Russian deals and a Ukrainian hit job: Inside Monaco’s darkest chapter

Saturday 18 July 2026 20:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

Tainted by murder, money laundering and now a parcel bomb with a suspect reportedly shot dead in Kyiv, Monaco, Helen Kirwan-Taylor explores the dark underbelly of the iconic Mediterranean resort.

Image from: Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

Russian deals and a Ukrainian hit job: Inside Monaco’s darkest chapter

Watch: Ukraine claims 116 vessels targeted in Sea of Azov

Saturday 18 July 2026 19:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

How Storm Shadow missiles could be replaced by new UK strike weapons

Saturday 18 July 2026 18:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

Britain has successfully tested new long-range strike weapons, with the government aiming to deliver them to Ukraine within months to bolster its defence capabilities.

The initiative, known as "Project Brakestop," seeks to produce munitions more quickly and affordably than current systems like Storm Shadow missiles, with specifications including a 500km range, 225kg warhead, and speeds over 600km per hour.

Initial trials took place at a range in the Hebrides, involving three remaining suppliers – MBDA UK, MGI Engineering, and Rotron Aerospace – after a competitive development process that saw 27 industry bids.

You can read more below:

Image from: Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

How Storm Shadow missiles could be replaced by new UK strike weapons

Recap: Zelesnky claims attacks on two Russian logistics hubs

Saturday 18 July 2026 17:08 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky has said Kyiv hit two logistics facilities in Russia during a round of strikes.

In a post on X, he wrote: “Today, our long-range sanctions worked across three areas on Russian territory, as well as on our temporarily occupied land and at sea.

“In particular, in response to Russian strikes on our civilian infrastructure and on our cities and communities, two major logistics facilities were hit – in the Moscow and Tambov regions, more than 500 and nearly 700 kilometeres from the front line.

“The aggressor used them to supply sanctioned components for drone production and navigation equipment. An oil facility was also struck.”

It comes as Ukraine ramps up its long-distance drone operations against Russia.

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 18, 2026

How Ukraine’s devastating drone attacks triggered Russia’s fuel shortage crisis

Saturday 18 July 2026 17:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

Ukraine’s persistent drone attacks have crippled Russian oil refineries across the country.

You can read more about how the targeted attacks have wreaked havoc on Russia’s fuel stocks below:

Image from: Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

How Ukraine’s devastating drone attacks triggered Russia’s fuel shortage crisis

New video shows Monaco parcel bomb blast attack on Ukrainian tycoon

Saturday 18 July 2026 16:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

Ukrainian officials have released footage they say shows the bomb attack on a Ukrainian tycoon in Monaco.

Ukraine's Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko said on Friday, July 17, that investigators recovered key evidence in the case of the attempted assassination of Vadym Iermolaiev on 29 June.

Specialists from the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) restored a surveillance camera recording that suspects had allegedly attempted to destroy, Mr Kravchenko said.

The camera was installed near the scene in advance to obtain confirmation that the alleged contract killing had been carried out, according to the prosecutor general.

Mr Iermolaiev was left fighting for his life after the blast, with a woman and child also injured.

A Ukrainian woman suspected of being behind the attack has been found shot dead near Kyiv, Ukrainian prosecutors said.

Image from: Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

New video shows Monaco parcel bomb blast attack on Ukrainian tycoon

Death toll rises to nine

Saturday 18 July 2026 15:54 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

The number of people killed in Ukrainian strikes on Russian warehouses has risen to nine, according to Russian authorities.

Officials have said 62 people were also wounded in the attacks on the two Wildberries warehouses.

Editorial: Is there a way out of Vladimir Putin’s forever war?

Saturday 18 July 2026 15:00 , Nicole Wootton-Cane

Until Russia’s president is gone – and he is already 73 – a permanent standoff seems the best that can be hoped for.

Image from: Ukraine-Russia war latest: One dead and 13 hurt in Kyiv as Putin launches biggest ballistic missile attack yet

Is there a way out of Vladimir Putin’s forever war?

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