Kyiv Hit Again by Russian Missile Attack; Apartment Fire Reported

Shortly after Kyiv officials issued an air raid alert and urged citizens to seek shelter, Russian forces attacked the city with multiple missiles early this morning. Witnesses and authorities reported hearing several explosions and seeing plumes of smoke. According to Reuters and AFP, Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, stated, "The enemy is attacking with ballistic missiles." Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported that a fire broke out in a non-residential area in the Podil district, and a nine-story apartment building caught fire after being hit by suspected falling debris. Klitschko stated via the messaging app Telegram, "In the Obolon district, several cars caught fire after missile debris fell, and fires also broke out in two open areas, one of which is near a kindergarten." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned in his nightly video address yesterday that Russia might launch a large-scale attack and urged residents to pay close attention to air raid alerts. He said, "Our defense forces are on duty 24/7 and are doing everything they can to protect us with the resources available." Russia warned last week that it intended to launch "systematic strikes" on targets in Kyiv associated with the Ukrainian military and decision-making centers, and called for foreigners to evacuate. Russia claims this is in response to a Ukrainian drone attack last week on a student dormitory in the Russian-occupied Luhansk region, which killed 21 people. Ukraine has denied carrying out the attack.