A Russian ballistic missile and drone barrage struck at least 10 regions across Ukraine overnight into Thursday, killing at least eight civilians, including children, and wounding dozens more. Russia launched more than 70 missiles, a significant number of them ballistic, along with more than 280 attack drones. More than 260 of the drones were intercepted, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The attack came two days after Zelenskyy met in Washington with President Trump and representatives of American defense companies, according to CBS News. Zelenskyy has been pressing for faster and larger deliveries of Patriot air defense systems, which are considered the best available defense against Russia's ballistic missile attacks. The Iran war has drained stockpiles of the American-made interceptors. Trump has promised to grant Ukraine licenses to build its own Patriots, but production could take a long time to set up.
"Given the critical shortage of air defense missiles from our partners, our warriors are accomplishing truly incredible things, demonstrating a very high level of professionalism," Zelenskyy said on social media. "This Russian terror once again proves that protection against the Russian missile threat is the most important task when it comes to saving the lives of our people," he said.
The barrage spanned regions including western areas near the border with Poland, far from the front line in the east. Ukraine is believed to store and manufacture weapons in the west. Its long-range drones and missiles have hit Russia's oil sector, causing a fuel crisis there.
While Ukraine absorbed the strikes, NATO member Poland was investigating reports that a Russian cruise missile entered its airspace and fell on its territory. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on X that a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile crossed into Poland overnight, violating NATO airspace. Sybiha called it a clear demonstration that strengthening Ukraine's air defense is urgent and serves as a guarantee of wider European protection.
Poland's Operational Command of the Armed Forces said on X that an unidentified object flying westward in the middle of the night was tracked in Polish airspace and an F-16 fighter jet was launched to identify and intercept it. The object disappeared from radar screens before it could be identified. A helicopter flew to the last known location, where the crew discovered a probable impact site.
Dozens of homes, businesses, and infrastructure facilities were destroyed or damaged across the affected regions, Zelenskyy said. Russia's invasion of Ukraine has now stretched past four years.
