6 dead as Russian missiles ‘rain down’ in Kyiv, Ukrainian officials say
Emergency teams are on the scene dealing with the consequences of a Russian strike in Kyiv, Ukraine, on November 25, 2025, in which 6 people died, 13 were injured, 18 were rescued, and 57 received psychological support. (Photo by State Emergency Service of Ukraine/Anadolu via Getty Images)
(KYIV, Ukraine) — A barrage of at least 22 Russian missiles targeted Ukraine overnight, with at least one striking the capital, Kyiv, in what the Ukrainian minister of energy called a “massive” attack on energy infrastructure.
Russia also fired overnight at least 460 drones, several of which flew into either Moldova or Romania, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said early on Tuesday.
“That is why all partners must not forget that every day lives need to be saved,” Zelenskyy said on social media. “Weapons and air defense are important, just as important is the sanction pressure on the aggressor.
Six people were killed and another 13 were injured in Ukraine, Zelenskyy said. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko earlier said two people were killed and seven others were injured.
The missile-and-drone attack followed negotiations in Switzerland over the weekend on a United States-proposed Russia-Ukraine peace plan. The strike also followed a secret meeting on Monday between U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and a Russian delegation in Abu Dhabi, a U.S. official told ABC News.
“Last night, Russia launched another attack – at a time when Ukraine, together with America, Europe, and many others around the world, are working virtually around the clock to stop the bloodshed,” Zelenskyy said on social media.
Residents of the Ukrainian capital were urged to take shelter as air-raid alerts blared.
“And so this night we spend in bombshelters, listening how the missiles rain down on Kyiv,” Kira Rudik, a member of Ukrainian parliament, said on social media. “This is russia’s response to peace negotiations.”
Some areas were experiencing disruptions to power and water, the Klitschko said. A residential building in one area of the city was on fire after debris hit it, he said.
“The enemy attack on Kyiv is ongoing,” Klitschko said in a post to Telegram early Tuesday local time.
Military officials in Ukraine said 438 drones and 14 missiles were destroyed or otherwise didn’t hit their targets. Missile hits and 26 strike drones were recorded impacting across 15 locations, with falling debris reported at 12 locations.
Zelenskyy said Monday said negotiators were were working toward peace “as quickly as possible.” Though he warned Ukrainians that “Russia will not ease its pressure on Ukraine.”
“In these days and weeks, it is essential to take air raid alerts and all similar strike threats very seriously,” he said on X. “We clearly understand whom we are dealing with, and all necessary orders have been issued within the Air Force and across all other components of Ukraine’s Defense and Security Forces. We will react.”
The strikes on Kyiv come a day after Russia launched over 160 drones into the country, Ukraine’s air force said.
Air defenses shot down or suppressed 125 drones, the air force said, with 37 craft impacting across 15 locations. At least four people were killed in Ukraine’s northeastern city of Kharkiv in the attack, the local mayor said.
Officials in Moldova said in a statement that 11 Russian drones entered their airspace overnight into Tuesday morning, one of which fell on a house in the northeast of the country.
Another two entered Romania, which is a NATO member, officials there said. In Romania, two German Typhoons and two Romanian F-16s were scrambled.
A Romanian Defense Ministry spokesperson told ABC News that one drone crashed in the country’s eastern Vaslui County.
It was not immediately clear if the drones were Shahed-style attack drones.
Andrii Sybiha, Ukraine’s minister of foreign affairs, decried the drone intrusions, saying on social media that they amounted to “yet another reminder that Russian aggression directly threatens not only Ukraine but also other European nations and the transatlantic community as a whole.”
“We stand in solidarity with our Odesa Triangle partners, Romania and Moldova, and condemn these reckless Russian actions,” he added.
ABC News’ David Brennan and Joe Simonetti contributed to this report.
A display of military drone equipment during the Steadfast Dart 25 exercise, part of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) Allied Reaction Force (ARF) training in Smardan, Romania, on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. (Photographer: Andrei Pungovschi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
(LONDON) — A drone crashed on the territory of NATO member Romania during Russia’s overnight attack on Ukrainian targets along the Danube River, the country’s defense ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.
Radars “signaled the presence of groups of drones in the area neighboring the national airspace, which led to the preventive activation of air defense systems,” the ministry said in a statement posted to its website.
One “aerial vehicle” was reported impacting in the Grindu area, around 3 miles south of the shared border, the ministry said.
“Teams made up of military personnel went on-site and reported the presence of possible drone fragments,” it added. “The area was secured and investigations are to be conducted in the early hours.”
“Weather conditions in the southeast of the country prevented the aircraft conducting air policing missions from scrambling,” the ministry said of its air force assets.
Alert messages were sent to residents of Romania’s northern Tulcea County, along the Danube River which forms the border with Ukraine, the ministry said. On the other side of the river, “a large number of explosions were observed” around the port of Izmail, it added.
The drone incursion came as Ukraine defended another night of intense Russian attacks. Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 119 drones of various types into the country overnight, of which 53 were shot down or suppressed.
The air force said 59 drones impacted across 18 locations, with drone debris reported falling in one location.
The Odesa region — which borders Romania to the west and encompasses Ukraine’s Danube River ports — was among the main targets of Monday night’s barrage, the air force said.
Russian drone and missile incursions into Romanian airspace have become a relatively common occurrence as Moscow expands its long-range strikes into Ukraine.
Romania’s Defense Ministry told ABC News in September that it had recorded at least 11 violations of the country’s airspace by drones since the start of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
A ministry spokesperson said there had been approximately 50 attacks involving Russian drones on Ukrainian territory near Romania’s borders up until mid-September, of which 30 saw drone debris falling on Romanian territory.
Such incidents have become “almost routine” for Romanians, Constantin Spinu, a former spokesperson for Romania’s Defense Ministry, told ABC News.
“There is a war going on right across the border, so this situation is no longer a surprise for Romanian public opinion,” he added.
The Defense Ministry and wider government, though, “are taking this very seriously,” Spinu added.
Repeated incursions of Russian projectiles have prompted questions as to NATO’s readiness to defend its airspace. In September, Poland became the first NATO nation to shoot down Russian drones over its territory.
Romania is yet to down any intruding Russian munitions. “There is always a risk-benefit calculus — and that is to be sometimes in seconds,” Spinu said. “Whenever you shoot something in the air, you have to take into consideration that you might not hit the target and your projectile can be a danger.”
As NATO scrambles to revitalize its military-industrial base and refill its arsenals, there is also the question of resources.
“You don’t use an F-35 missile or an F-16 missile that costs millions” against a relatively cheap drone, Spinu said. “But should that €2,000 drone represent a real danger for the population, I think it is worth using a multi-million piece of equipment.”
(LONDON) — A high-rise building in Gaza City was leveled by an Israeli strike on Friday, videos verified by ABC News show. Mushtaha Tower was located in the west of the city, near several large tent encampments where Palestinian civilians are sheltering.
Video reviewed and verified by ABC News shows the moment the tower collapses, rippling the canvas of an encampment’s tents. The verified footage shows at least three Israeli projectiles hitting the tower — people can be seen running as smoke engulfs the tent encampment.
Israeli officials claimed the building belonged to Hamas, shortly after issuing evacuation orders.
“Now the bolt is being removed from the gates of hell in Gaza,” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz wrote in Hebrew in a Friday post on X. “When the door opens, it will not close and IDF activity will increase — until the Hamas murderers and rapists accept Israel’s conditions for ending the war, primarily the release of all hostages and disarmament — or they will be destroyed.”
Earlier Friday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued a statement warning that “over the coming days,” it “will attack several buildings that have been converted into terrorist infrastructure in preparation for expanding the operation into Gaza City: cameras, surveillance rooms, sniper and anti-tank missile launching positions, and command and control centers.”
Mashtaha Tower management denied the Israeli accusations, issuing a statement after the high-rise was destroyed.
“We confirm that the tower, since its targeting last year, has been under strict supervision by the management, and only displaced civilians are allowed entry,” they wrote.
“We categorically confirm that the tower is free of any cameras or security equipment, and that all its floors are open and uncovered, containing no cameras, light or heavy weapons,” the building’s management added.
Ezzat al-Rishq, a member of Hamas’ Political Bureau, said in a statement that Israel’s “attempts to justify targeting residential towers and destroying the city of Gaza with false claims of their use by Hamas are nothing but flimsy excuses and blatant lies, aimed at covering up its heinous crimes against unarmed civilians and continuing the policy of extermination and total destruction of the Gaza Strip.”
Mashtaha Tower was believed to be empty due to the forced evacuation. However, one of the largest displacement camps is located near the site, where hundreds of families are currently living in tents.
At least 69 Palestinians were killed and 422 injured over the past 24 hours as a result of Israeli forces, Gaza’s Hamas-run Ministry of Health said on Friday. Among those were six people killed and 190 injured while trying to collect humanitarian aid, according to the health ministry.
Three people starved to death in the war-torn Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours, the Hamas-run Ministry of Health also said Friday. At least 376 people have died of starvation, including 134 children, since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 surprise terrorist attack in Israel, according to the health ministry.
(NEW YORK and LONDON) — Polish airspace was violated by at least 19 Russian drones overnight, the country’s prime minister said, in a torrent of activity that triggered a response from the NATO country’s air force, which scrambled and downed several of the drones.
“Those drones that posed a direct threat were shot down,” Prime Minister Donald Tusk said early on Wednesday on social media. “I am in constant communication with the Secretary-General of NATO and our allies.”
Polish and allied aircraft — including Dutch F-35 fighter jets — were airborne overnight to “help ensure safety in Polish skies,” the military said. Those operations ended early on Wednesday, Warsaw said, adding that the search continued for downed drones and potential impact sites.
The country’s military command described the violations as “unprecedented,” saying they amounted to “an act of aggression that posed a real threat to the safety of our citizens.”
Polish authorities did not report any casualties related to the drone incursion.
Tusk said this marked the first time in history that Russian drones had been shot down on NATO territory, which he said “changes the political situation.”
Tusk told parliament on Wednesday that Warsaw had requested the invocation of NATO Article 4. The clause allows a NATO member to convene a meeting of allies to consult on an issue that could threaten its security.
“Today we must say very loudly and clearly to the entire Western world and all our allies — Article 4 is only the beginning of deeper cooperation for the security of our skies and our border, which is NATO’s border, and words alone are by no means enough,” Tusk said.
“This is not just a war for Ukrainians,” he added. “This is a confrontation that Russia has declared against the entire free world.”
Tusk said that at least 19 Russian drones entered the country’s airspace late Tuesday and into early Wednesday, some of which crossed over from Belarus, and at least three were subsequently shot down by Polish and NATO forces.
Poland previously invoked Article 4 on Feb. 24, 2022, the day Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which triggered urgent NATO consultations at the time.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte was “consulting closely with Poland,” Allison Hart, a spokesperson for the bloc, said on social media. She confirmed “numerous” drones had entered Poland and said that NATO defenses had been activated.
NATO’s Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe said in a statement to social media that German Patriot surface-to-air missile systems based in Poland were placed on alert and that an Italian airborne early warning aircraft was deployed. A NATO aerial refueling aircraft was also launched.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Wednesday referred journalists’ questions to Russia’s Defense Ministry.
“This is not within our competence, it is the prerogative of the Russian Ministry of Defense,” Peskov told reporters.
Asked to comment on accusations by Europe and NATO that the incident was a Russian provocation, Peskov replied, “The EU and NATO leadership accuse Russia of provocation on a daily basis, most often without even attempting to present any arguments.”
Peskov added that Russia had not received any requests for contact from Poland’s leadership.
French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the incident as “simply unacceptable.” He in a post to X, “I call on Russia to put an end to this reckless escalation. I reiterate to the Polish people and their government our full solidarity.”
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in post to X, “Europe is in a fight. A fight for our liberty and our ability to determine our destiny for ourselves.”
“Today, we have seen a reckless and unprecedented violation of Poland and Europe’s [airspace] by more than 10 Russian Shahed drones,” von der Leyen added. “Europe stands in full solidarity with Poland.”
European Union foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas described the incident as “the most serious European airspace violation by Russia since the war began,” adding that “and indications suggest it was intentional, not accidental.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy early on Wednesday described the violation as “another escalation step.”
“An extremely dangerous precedent for Europe,” he said in Ukrainian on the messaging app Telegram.
It was not immediately clear whether Russia had intended to send the drones into NATO airspace. Russian and Ukrainian drones have been known to go off course during long-range strikes due to electronic warfare measures employed by the combatants.
The incursions occurred during a major Russian strike on Ukraine, which the air force in Kyiv said consisted of 415 drones and 35 missiles. Of those, 386 drones and 27 missiles were intercepted or suppressed, the air force said.
The Kremlin did not immediately issue a statement but Zelenskyy positioned the violation as anything but an accident — saying it might have been considered one if it had been just one drone that crossed the border.
Zelenskyy called for consequences for Russia, saying Moscow “must feel that the war cannot be expanded and must be ended.”
Military officials in Poland earlier said the country’s airspace was “repeatedly violated by drone-type objects” in the overnight hours amid Russian strikes on targets in Ukraine.
“An operation is underway aimed at identifying and neutralizing the objects,” the Polish military said in one of its initial statements, each of which urged people to stay at home.
The most threatened areas had been Podlaskie, Mazowieckie and Lubelskie, Poland said. Polish security services said they sent an SMS message to cellphones in the area — sending the type of alert that’s become a nightly occurrence in neighboring Ukraine.
Earlier, the Polish military said it had scrambled jets and was taking “preventative” action during the “massive attack” carried out by Russia on facilities in Ukraine.
“Polish and allied aircraft are operating in our airspace, and ground-based air defense and radar reconnaissance systems have reached the highest state of readiness,” the military said in the earlier statement.
Tusk, the Polish prime minister, convened an extraordinary government meeting early on Wednesday, bringing together the country’s emergency and military officials.
Polish Deputy Prime Minister Radoslaw Sikorski, who also serves as foreign affairs minister, met prior to that meeting with Andrii Sybiha, the Ukrainian foreign affairs minister, according to Poland. Jacek Najder, Poland’s representative to NATO, was also present, the country’s Foreign Ministry said.
“The security of Polish women and men is the greatest priority,” the ministry said prior to the meeting.
Tusk in the emergency cabinet meeting said the there was “no reason to panic,” according to the Chancellery.
“The procedures were implemented correctly, the decision-making process was flawless, and the threat was effectively eliminated thanks to the resolute actions of commanders, soldiers, and our allies,” Tusk said during the meeting, according to his office. “I am deeply grateful.”
The Defense Ministry in Belarus — which is aligned with Russia and has assisted its invasion of Ukraine — said in a statement that its forces also downed drones that went off course “as a result of the impact of the parties’ electronic warfare assets.”
Minsk said it shared information with neighboring Poland and Lithuania regarding the incoming drones. “This allowed the Polish side to respond promptly to the actions of the drones by scrambling their forces on duty,” the ministry said.
The ministry added that Polish forces had also notified Belarusian forces of incoming unidentified aircraft from Ukrainian territory.
A Lithuanian Defense Ministry official told ABC News that there were no violations of Lithuanian airspace overnight.
In Romania — which borders Ukraine to its southwest — the Defense Ministry said two F-16 fighter jets were scrambled in response to a “group of aerial drones in the area of the Ukrainian town of Valcov, on the border with Romania.”
No drones entered Romanian airspace, the ministry said in a statement.
