Ukraine Says 53 Hurt in Russian Missile Strikes on Kyiv

Firefighters work at a site of a building damaged during a Russian missile strike, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Dec. 13, 2023. Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters

KYIV—Russia’s second missile assault on Kyiv this week injured at least 53 people, damaging homes, and a children’s hospital, Ukrainian officials claimed on Wednesday, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pleaded for more help for his country.

Ukraine’s air defence systems downed all 10 ballistic missiles that targeted the capital at about 3 a.m. (0100 GMT), Ukraine’s Air Force claimed on the Telegram app.

Falling debris caused injuries and destruction in four of Kyiv’s districts along the Dnipro River, which cuts through the capital, officials said. Thirty-five buildings were damaged, according to the city’s military administration.

Ukraine’s national police said 53 people, including six children, had been injured by the attack. Eighteen people have been hospitalized, it said in a social media post.

Ukraine’s Armed Forces General Staff identified the projectiles as Iskander-M ballistic missiles, as well as S-400s: extremely fast missiles intended for air defence, but which have also been used to hit ground targets.

Air Defense

Mr. Zelenskyy, who was visiting Norway on Wednesday, said his main priority was to strengthen air defences.

His chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, praised Western-supplied air defence systems and their operators after Ukraine downed all 10. “The effectiveness of Western weapons in the hands of Ukrainian soldiers cannot be doubted,” Mr. Yermak said.

The Air Force claimed it also shot down all 10 Russian-launched attack drones over the Odesa region in southern Ukraine.

Windows and entrances at a children’s hospital in Kyiv’s Dniprovskyi district were shattered by debris, but based on initial assessments, there were no casualties, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.

“These (ballistic) missiles fly at a speed up to 8,000 km per hour,” Mr. Klitschko told Reuters while visiting a site near one of the damaged buildings.

Kyiv military administration chief Serhiy Popko said 17 people, including seven children, were evacuated from a building in the Dniprovskyi district after debris hit a building and nearby cars, causing a fire.

The attack followed a salvo of ballistic missiles that targeted Kyiv on Monday and injured four people.

There was no comment from Russia about Wednesday’s attack, which also damaged buildings in Kyiv’s Desnyanskyi, Darnitskyi, and Holosiivskyi districts.