Russia launched the biggest air attack on Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion, the Ukrainian military told CNN.
An unprecedented number of drones and missiles fired at targets across the country, killing at least 31 people and injuring more than 150 others.
Here’s what you should know:
- The victims: Viktor Kobzystyi, one of Ukraine’s most celebrated basketball players who then became a coach, along with coach Anton Nikulin were killed in the Russian missile attacks early Friday, Ukrainian officials said. A 53-year-old primary school teacher was also among those killed in Zaporizhzhia on Friday, following Russia’s large-scale attack on Ukraine earlier today, local authorities said.
- Where it happened: The attack targeted Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, as well as Lviv, Dnipro, Odesa, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyi and other Ukrainian regions, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said. A shopping center, apartment buildings and a metro station were among the places hit, the ministry noted. Video from Dnipro shows extensive damage to a maternity hospital after a Russian missile strike early Friday.
- The weapons: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia used “nearly every type of weapon in its arsenal” in the massive wave of missile and drone attacks. Preliminary information indicates Russia used about 158 weapons. Zelensky said on Telegram that Russia used “‘Kinzhals,’ S-300s, cruise missiles, and drones. Strategic bombers launched X-101/X-505 missiles.”
- Reactions: Zelensky on Friday urged the international community to respond to Russia’s latest aerial assault. Additionally, Ukraine called for an urgent United Nations Security Council meeting following the attack. European officials on Friday — including the president of the European Commission, the UK Prime Minister and others — vowed to stand with Ukraine for the long run. And, US President Joe Biden said Russia’s latest aerial assault on Ukraine serves as a reminder of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s intentions in the country. Bridget Brink, US ambassador to Ukraine, called for more funding for Kyiv and the UK is sending “hundreds of air defense missiles” to Ukraine, British Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said Friday.
- An unidentified object in Poland’s skies: In the early hours of Friday, “an unidentified airborne object” entered Polish airspace from Ukrainian territory, the Polish military said. Poland’s most senior military officer said that “all indications” point to the object being a Russian missile. Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Władysław Teofil Bartoszewski summoned the chargé d’affaires of the Russian Federation, Andrei Ordash, on Friday, the Polish foreign ministry said in a statement.
- More strikes: Without referring directly to the strikes early Friday, the Russian Defense Ministry said the Russian forces carried out 50 group strikes and one mass strike this week.
- Other headlines to know: Zelensky made a surprise visit to troops fighting in one of the most fiercely contested parts of the eastern Donetsk region: the ruined city of Avdiivka. A year after Zelensky secured bipartisan support from the United States for its defense against Russia’s full-scale invasion, the outlook looks much more grim. A long-anticipated Ukrainian offensive in the south has made scant progress. Russia appears to have weathered international sanctions, for now, and has converted its economy into a war machine.
