In what Moscow called a “response” to a Ukrainian missile strike on a chemical plant, Russian missiles hit Kyiv at sunrise on Friday, killing at least one person and damaging six diplomatic missions in the city center.
Russia claimed its strikes targeted arms industry and security service facilities.
“In response to the actions of the Kyiv regime, supported by its Western handlers, a coordinated strike with long-range precision weapons was carried out today,” the Russian Defense Ministry stated.
It said the strikes hit an office of the SBU security service and a defense industry site, asserting that “all targets were successfully struck.”
“There were explosions one after another,” said Ksenia, 45, who was staying at a hotel near the wreckage site.
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry: Six diplomatic missions damaged
The Ukrainian air force reported intercepting all five Iskander missiles launched by Russia, but falling debris caused damage in multiple districts.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry confirmed damage to a building housing diplomatic missions from Portugal, Albania, Argentina, Palestine, North Macedonia, and Montenegro.
The strikes left a 53-year-old man dead and 12 people injured, mostly from shrapnel, according to Kyiv’s city administration.
“Another heinous Russian attack against Kyiv,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen posted on X, condemning the attack.
The Portuguese government summoned Russia’s chargé d’affaires in Lisbon to issue a formal protest in the absence of its ambassador.
