Russia has launched its biggest offensive yet in Kyiv, killing at least 13, the mayor said

Kyiv, Ukraine – Russia launched its biggest attack yet on the Ukrainian capital on Thursday night, killing at least 13 people and wounding many others, the Mayor of Kyiv said. A huge explosion rocked the city for hours.

These attacks with ballistic and cruise missiles and drones have damaged buildings and civilian infrastructure throughout Kyiv. Russia used 74 missiles and 496 non-cooperative aircraft, the Ukrainian military said, according to Reuters.

Many citizens took shelter in subway stations after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other officials issued initial warnings of the attack.

Damage was recorded in 30 places across the city, mainly residential buildings and civilian infrastructure, said Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Military Administration in Kyiv.

Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said 20 residential buildings were damaged. Emergency services say they have deployed nearly 500 people and 100 units of special vehicles, including a helicopter, to deal with the aftermath of the attack.

But Russia's Defense Ministry said the strike hit what it called key military sites in Kyiv, according to Reuters.

After the attack, Zelenskyy asked Washington for a license to manufacture Patriot missiles, calling the air defense equipment in his country an “absolute necessity,” the French news agency AFP reported, citing a social network.

And Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called on allies to strengthen the country's air defenses following what he described as a “terrible night” in Kyiv, urging partners not to delay decisions on providing air and missile defense systems. Writing on social media, Sybiha said the number of dead after the attack may increase as rescue teams continue their work.

Russia has stepped up its attacks on Kyiv in recent weeks, as Ukraine's long-range drone campaign against Russian military bases and energy facilities has caused fuel shortages and disrupted supply lines inside Russia.

Sybiha rejected any attempts to justify the Russian strikes as retaliation for Ukraine's protracted aggression, saying Ukraine was exercising its right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter while Russia continued to attack.

Officials have detailed the damage from the attack

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko urged residents of the capital to stay in shelters because of the ongoing “attacks of the angry enemy”.

He described it as the biggest in Russia in his city, reports AFP.

Klitschko said a paramedic in critical condition was among the injured in the Shevchenkivskyi district. Ukraine's Emergency Service said a hotel and two five-story residential buildings were damaged in the area.

In Desniaskyi district, people were trapped inside a damaged nine-story building while rescuers headed to the scene, Klitschko said.

In the village of Holosiivskyi, a fire broke out on the roof of a 16-story building, according to the Emergency Service.

In Sviatoshynskyi district, a fire broke out in two private properties, emergency services said. Debris trapped people in one of them, according to the mayor. In Darnytskyi district, six floors of a nine-story building collapsed after the Russian strike and another five-story building, Klitschko said. Emergency services said a 16-story building and private residences in the area were damaged.

Tkachenko said the attack destroyed a residential building in Desnianskyi district, started a fire near two residential buildings in Pecherskyi district, and ignited a fire near an administrative building in Solomianskyi district. He said authorities are also recording damage in Obolonskyi and Podilskyi districts. The head of the Kyiv Regional Administration, Mykola Kalashnyk, said that the damage occurred in five regions. Three people were injured in Bucha district, he said.