Volodymyr Zelensky has called on world leaders to dial up pressure on Russia after it attacked Kyiv with an Oreshnik hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile.
The combined attack included 600 strike drones and 90 air, sea, and ground-launched missiles, according to Ukraine's air force.
At least four people were killed in the attack, while more than 80 were injured, authorities said.
The Ukrainian president has urged allies to put “pressure on the aggressor”.
He said: “We count on a response from the world – and on a response that is not post factum, but preventive.”
Several world leaders, including French president Emmanuel Macron, Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni, and vice-president of the European Commission Kaja Kallas, have criticised Russia.
Ms Kallas said EU foreign ministers would meet next week to discuss how they could increase international pressure.
Germany’s chancellor Friedrich Merz labelled Russia’s bombardment of the Kyiv region and its use of the Oreshnik missile system as a “reckless escalation”.
Russia’s defence ministry said it attacked Ukraine on Sunday in retaliation for Ukrainian attacks on “civilian facilities on Russian territory”.
Vladimir Putin ordered his military to prepare options for retaliation for a drone strike on a student dorm in the Russian-controlled Luhansk region of eastern Ukraine, which Kyiv denied responsibility for.
Key Points
- Russia hits Ukraine with Oreshnik missile in one of war's biggest attacks on Kyiv
- Ukrainians flee Kyiv after latest deadly Russian attack
- Zelensky praises emergency services as Kyiv deals with aftermath of deadly strikes
- GPS signals of RAF jet carrying defence secretary ‘jammed by Russia’
- Missile attacks on Ukraine demonstrate Putin’s ‘weakness’, Yvette Cooper says
Latvian lawmaker moves to form new govt after PM steps down over Ukraine-Russia drones row
13:00 , Harriette Boucher
A Latvian opposition lawmaker is looking to form a four-party majority government after the ruling coalition collapsed this month over national security concerns.
Andris Kulbergs was proposed as the next prime minister after Evika Silina stepped down.
Ms Silina resigned after a dispute within her coalition over the government's handling of the drone incursions, triggering its collapse just five months before a scheduled general election.
The Baltic states, which are close allies of Kyiv and members of NATO, have reported repeated incursions by Russian drones in recent months, as Ukraine steps up attacks on targets inside Russia, including near the Baltic Sea.
Russia says it will continue to strike Kyiv in response to student dorm attack - report
11:55 , Harriette Boucher
Russia has reportedly vowed to continue its strikes on Kyiv in response to the attack on a student dormitory on Friday.
The comments come from foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, according to TASS news agency.
Russia has claimed the incident, which killed 21 people, was a deliberate drone attack by Ukraine, however Ukraine's military has denied responsibility.
Macron asks Belarus to improve ties with Europe and not get drawn in Russia’s war
11:00 , Arpan Rai
French president Emmanuel Macron and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko spoke by phone on Sunday to discuss regional issues and Minsk’s relationship with the European Union, as well as with Paris, officials said.
The conversation is the first such direct contact between the two leaders since the invasion of Ukraine by Lukashenko's closest ally Vladimir Putin in February 2022.
"Macron emphasised the risks for Belarus if it allows itself to be drawn into Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine," a source told AFP.
"He also called on Alexander Lukashenko to take the necessary steps to improve relations between Belarus and Europe,” they added.
Russia uses hypersonic Oreshnik missile in a rare deadly strike on Ukraine
10:30 , Arpan Rai
Russia uses hypersonic Oreshnik missile in a rare deadly strike on UkraineRussia used the powerful hypersonic Oreshnik ballistic missile during a mass drone and missile attack on Kyiv on Sunday that killed at least two people.
It was only the third time that Russia has used the Oreshnik missile against Ukraine since the war began with Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.
The Oreshnik has a range of several thousand kilometres.
The previous two strikes had hit major cities, but Volodymyr Zelensky said this one had struck Bila Tserkva, a city of 200,000 people that lies about 64km (40 miles) from the outskirts of Kyiv.
The Oreshnik's warhead appears to have split into 36 submunitions, according to a review of Reuters footage of the strike by Rollo Collins, an investigator at the Centre for Information Resilience, an open-source investigation organisation.
Moscow said it had used Oreshnik, Iskander, Kinzhal and Zircon missiles in retaliation for Kyiv's strikes on civilian targets in Russia.
UK, France and other Nato members block military aid funding to Ukraine – report
10:00 , Arpan Rai
The UK, France and other Nato states have blocked a plan under which each member would offer 0.25 per cent of their GDP to military aid for Ukraine, an alliance source said.
A Nato source aware of the member states not keen on backing the proposal said the primary opponents were the UK, France, Canada, Italy and Spain, reported The Telegraph.
“They’re not very enthusiastic about the idea,” they said.
Earlier, Nato secretary general Mark Rutte had said that the proposal would likely be rejected.
"I don't think this one will be accepted because there's a lot of opposition against this fixed 0.25," he said.
Energy infrastructure damaged in missile attack on Russia's Belgorod
09:30 , Arpan Rai
Energy infrastructure was damaged in a massive missile attack on Russia's Belgorod region bordering Ukraine, including the city of Belgorod, local officials said this morning.
There were no casualties but power and water supply were interrupted, Interfax news agency reported. It did not provide further details.
Ukrainians flee Kyiv after latest deadly Russian attack
09:00 , Arpan Rai
Some locals said they had no choice but to flee Kyiv after Sunday's attack, one of the worst so far on the capital since the war began.
“It was a terrible night, and there had never been anything like it in the entire war," said Kyiv resident Svitlana Onofryichuk, 55, who had worked for 22 years in the market that was damaged.
“I am very sorry that I have to say goodbye to Kyiv now, I am not staying there anymore, there is no possibility," she added.
“My job is gone, everything is gone, everything has burned down.”
Yevhen Zosin, 74, a Kyiv resident who witnessed the attack, said the moment he heard the explosion he rushed to grab his dog.
“Then there was another explosion and she and I were thrown back like a pin by the shock wave. We both survived, she and I. My apartment was blown to pieces,” he said.
In Kyiv’s Shevchenko district, a five-story residential building was hit, which caused a fire, and one person was killed, Ukraine's state emergency service reported.
A school building was damaged by an attack while people sheltered inside, mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
Damage was recorded in 50 locations across several districts of the capital, including residential buildings, shopping centres and schools, Ukraine's emergency service said in a Telegram post.
Fires continued to rage into the morning, complicating rescue efforts as buildings collapsed from the blasts.
Finland's Stubb says he can represent Europe in Ukraine peace talks if asked
08:30 , Arpan Rai
Finland’s president Alexander Stubb said he is open to representing Europe in Ukraine peace talks if he is asked.
“If you ask, it's probably something that can't be answered negatively," Stubb told Yle, Finland's public service broadcaster.
Ukraine is seeking active communication channels to end the war with Russia as US-brokered peace talks have stalled amid the conflict in the Middle East.
Foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said Ukraine has asked Europe to help with the process of an airport ceasefire, a limited truce on attacks on airport facilities so that both nations can continue their air travel safely.
“We probably need a new role for Europe in our peace efforts," Sybiha has said.
Russia claims deadly attack on Kyiv was in response to Friday's dormitory attack
07:57 , Arpan Rai
Russia’s defence ministry has said it attacked Ukraine yesterday using missiles and drones to strike Ukrainian “military command and control facilities,” air bases and military industrial enterprises.
The ministry claimed the deadly attack was in retaliation for Ukrainian attacks on “civilian facilities on Russian territory,” without giving detail.
Russian president Vladimir Putin on Friday denounced a drone strike on a college dormitory in Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine, which Moscow blamed on Kyiv.
He said there were no military or law enforcement facilities near the college.
Putin said he ordered the Russian military to retaliate.
The death toll from that strike had risen to 21, Russian authorities said late Saturday.
They said 42 other people had been wounded in the attack the previous night. The Kremlin-installed authorities of the Luhansk region announced two days of mourning for the victims.
At a UN Security Council emergency meeting on the strike, held at the request of Russia, Ukrainian ambassador Andrii Melnyk denied his Russian counterpart’s accusations of war crimes, calling them a “pure propaganda show” and asserting that the 22 May operations “exclusively targeted the Russian war machine.”
British man, 23, killed in action in Ukraine after joining specialist unit supporting army
07:28 , Arpan Rai
A 23-year-old British man, Ayrton Redfearn, was killed in action in Ukraine's Donetsk region. He died on 9 May.
From Devon, Mr Redfearn had joined a specialist unit supporting the Ukrainian army in 2025, his mother, Natasha, told the BBC, adding she “lived in fear of the police coming to my door with bad news”.
“This fear became reality on the evening of 11 May, and the world of myself, and Ayrton’s 10-year-old brother, then fell apart,” she said.
Mr Redfearn was a Torquay Air Cadet as a child, joining the RAF at 17 before travelling overseas.
His mother stated: "We are trying to have just 1 per cent of the strength, bravery and courage of Ayrton, and if we can do this, it will help us to eventually come to terms with our life without him.
British man, 23, killed in Ukraine after joining specialist unit supporting army
Ukraine says it hit oil pumping station in Russia's Vladimir region
07:14 , Arpan Rai
Ukraine's SBU security service said its drones attacked an oil pumping dispatch station in Russia's Vladimir region yesterday, adding that the facility was an important node in pumping oil products southwest to Moscow and its surrounding area.
Avdeyev's post, quoted by Interfax news agency, referred only to the fire being at an infrastructure site and gave no indication that it was linked to the oil industry.
"It supplies fuel to major oil depots around Moscow and to Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, and Vnukovo airports," the SBU said in a statement on social media.
It added that a fire over an area spanning 800 square metres (8,600 square feet) was recorded after the strike.
The governor of Vladimir region, Alexander Avdeyev, said in a social media post that the fire near the town of Kameshkovo had been extinguished.
Macron asks Belarus to improve ties with Europe and not get drawn in Russia’s war
06:54 , Arpan Rai
French president Emmanuel Macron and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko spoke by phone on Sunday to discuss regional issues and Minsk’s relationship with the European Union, as well as with Paris, officials said.
The conversation is the first such direct contact between the two leaders since the invasion of Ukraine by Lukashenko's closest ally Vladimir Putin in February 2022.
"Macron emphasised the risks for Belarus if it allows itself to be drawn into Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine," a source told AFP.
"He also called on Alexander Lukashenko to take the necessary steps to improve relations between Belarus and Europe,” they added.
Ukraine's air defence missile shortage in focus after Putin's major aerial barrage
06:21 , Arpan Rai
Volodymyr Zelensky has said not all the ballistic missiles fired by Russian forces were intercepted and that most of the strikes hit Kyiv, which was the primary target of the attack.
The latest combined attack included 600 strike drones and 90 air, sea and ground-launched missiles, according to Ukraine's Air Force. Ukrainian air defences destroyed and jammed 549 drones and 55 missiles. Around 19 missiles failed to reach targets, the Air Force said.
The attack and the apparent interception failures underscored Ukraine’s chronic shortage of air defence missiles capable of downing ballistics.
Kyiv relies heavily on US Patriot air defence systems to intercept such weapons, but interceptor missiles remain in critically short supply and are among Ukraine’s most urgent requests to its Western partners.
Developing a domestically produced alternative has become a top priority for Ukraine’s defence ministry, though doing so will require significant time and funding.
By saturating Kyiv with large numbers of ballistic missiles on Sunday, Russia may also be seeking to deplete Ukraine’s limited stocks ahead of what could be an even more intense wave of attacks this summer.
How Ukraine and Russia’s drone war spread into Europe as Putin ‘hijacks’ Kyiv’s weapons in mid-air
06:00 , Arpan Rai
The war between Russia and Ukraine has brought an unlikely weapon to the forefront – the unmanned aerial vehicle, better known as a drone – changing the landscape of global conflict.
The Ukraine-Russia war is the first to use the weapons on a widespread scale, with hundreds of thousands deployed across the four years since the Russian president Vladimir Putin ordered his forces to invade Ukraine in February 2022.
Just this weekend, Putin launched 600 drones in retaliation for what Moscow claimed was a Ukrainian drone strike on a school in the Russian-controlled Ukrainian region of Luhansk.
But now these light aircraft threaten to spread the deadly war into mainland Europe, with experts claiming Putin has found a new way to agitate the West.
How Ukraine and Russia’s drone war spread to Europe as Putin ‘hijacks’ Kyiv’s weapons
Russia uses hypersonic Oreshnik missile in a rare deadly strike on Ukraine
05:50 , Arpan Rai
Russia uses hypersonic Oreshnik missile in a rare deadly strike on UkraineRussia used the powerful hypersonic Oreshnik ballistic missile during a mass drone and missile attack on Kyiv on Sunday that killed at least two people.
It was only the third time that Russia has used the Oreshnik missile against Ukraine since the war began with Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.
The Oreshnik has a range of several thousand kilometres.
The previous two strikes had hit major cities, but Volodymyr Zelensky said this one had struck Bila Tserkva, a city of 200,000 people that lies about 64km (40 miles) from the outskirts of Kyiv.
The Oreshnik's warhead appears to have split into 36 submunitions, according to a review of Reuters footage of the strike by Rollo Collins, an investigator at the Centre for Information Resilience, an open-source investigation organisation.
Moscow said it had used Oreshnik, Iskander, Kinzhal and Zircon missiles in retaliation for Kyiv's strikes on civilian targets in Russia.
UK, France and other Nato members block military aid funding to Ukraine – report
05:38 , Arpan Rai
The UK, France and other Nato states have blocked a plan under which each member would offer 0.25 per cent of their GDP to military aid for Ukraine, an alliance source said.
A Nato source aware of the member states not keen on backing the proposal said the primary opponents were the UK, France, Canada, Italy and Spain, reported The Telegraph.
“They’re not very enthusiastic about the idea,” they said.
Earlier, Nato secretary general Mark Rutte had said that the proposal would likely be rejected.
"I don't think this one will be accepted because there's a lot of opposition against this fixed 0.25," he said.
GPS signals of RAF jet carrying defence secretary ‘jammed by Russia’
05:00 , Arpan Rai
An RAF jet carrying the defence secretary had its signals jammed as it flew near the Russian border this week.
John Healey was travelling back to the UK from Estonia, where he had been visiting British soldiers, when the electronic attack happened, according to The Times.
It is thought Russia was behind the incident on Thursday, which meant that smartphones and laptops were unable to connect to the internet and pilots had to use a different navigation system as the plane’s GPS was disabled for the entire three-hour flight.
It is not known if Mr Healey was deliberately targeted, but the flight path was visible on aircraft tracking websites, the newspaper reported.
Russia ‘jams GPS signals of RAF jet’ carrying defence secretary
Energy infrastructure damaged in missile attack on Russia's Belgorod
04:40 , Arpan Rai
Energy infrastructure was damaged in a massive missile attack on Russia's Belgorod region bordering Ukraine, including the city of Belgorod, local officials said this morning.
There were no casualties but power and water supply were interrupted, Interfax news agency reported. It did not provide further details.
Ukrainians flee Kyiv after latest deadly Russian attack
04:34 , Arpan Rai
Some locals said they had no choice but to flee Kyiv after Sunday's attack, one of the worst so far on the capital since the war began.
“It was a terrible night, and there had never been anything like it in the entire war," said Kyiv resident Svitlana Onofryichuk, 55, who had worked for 22 years in the market that was damaged.
“I am very sorry that I have to say goodbye to Kyiv now, I am not staying there anymore, there is no possibility," she added.
“My job is gone, everything is gone, everything has burned down.”
Yevhen Zosin, 74, a Kyiv resident who witnessed the attack, said the moment he heard the explosion he rushed to grab his dog.
“Then there was another explosion and she and I were thrown back like a pin by the shock wave. We both survived, she and I. My apartment was blown to pieces,” he said.
In Kyiv’s Shevchenko district, a five-story residential building was hit, which caused a fire, and one person was killed, Ukraine's state emergency service reported.
A school building was damaged by an attack while people sheltered inside, mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
Damage was recorded in 50 locations across several districts of the capital, including residential buildings, shopping centres and schools, Ukraine's emergency service said in a Telegram post.
Fires continued to rage into the morning, complicating rescue efforts as buildings collapsed from the blasts.
Finland's Stubb says he can represent Europe in Ukraine peace talks if asked
04:00 , Arpan Rai
Finland’s president Alexander Stubb said he is open to representing Europe in Ukraine peace talks if he is asked.
“If you ask, it's probably something that can't be answered negatively," Stubb told Yle, Finland's public service broadcaster.
Ukraine is seeking active communication channels to end the war with Russia as US-brokered peace talks have stalled amid the conflict in the Middle East.
Foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said Ukraine has asked Europe to help with the process of an airport ceasefire, a limited truce on attacks on airport facilities so that both nations can continue their air travel safely.
“We probably need a new role for Europe in our peace efforts," Sybiha has said.
Editorial: Putin will not wait for the UK to get its act together on defence
03:00 , Dan Haygarth
Nato’s joint military exercises on the London Underground are a reminder that the UK’s soft targets are underprotected and underfunded – even as our enemies are looking more dangerous than ever.
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Putin will not wait for the UK to get its act together on defence
Denmark says support for Ukraine must be increased
02:00 , Dan Haygarth
Acting PM Mette Frederiksen: Last night, Russia launched a brutal attack on civilians and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine. It shows a total disregard for human life. We must increase our support to Ukraine and pressure on Russia.
— Statsministeriet (@Statsmin) May 24, 2026
Zelensky: 'Continued support from our partners is no less important'
01:00 , Dan Haygarth
Following Russia’s attack on Kyiv with an Oreshnik hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile, Volodymyr Zelensky said on X on Sunday: “I am grateful to all our services currently working at the sites of Russia’s overnight strikes: units of the State Emergency Service, the National Police, and municipal services.
“Everyone is acting as effectively as possible, given the scale of the attack and its consequences: about 100 people have been injured across the country, and four more, tragically, have been killed.
“My condolences to the families and loved ones. In Kyiv alone, about 30 residential buildings have been damaged or destroyed.
“It is very important that our people are supporting one another. I am grateful to each and every person helping those affected.
“Continued support from our partners is no less important. I am grateful to everyone now expressing words of support. But concrete steps to bolster air defense are also needed – missile deliveries must not stop for a single day.”
Full story: Putin launches huge attack on Ukraine with high speed missile and 600 drones after threatening revenge
Sunday 24 May 2026 23:59 , Daniel Haygarth
Putin launches ‘revenge’ attack on Ukraine with hypersonic missile and drones
GPS signals of RAF jet carrying defence secretary ‘jammed by Russia’
Sunday 24 May 2026 23:40 , Dan Haygarth
An RAF jet carrying the defence secretary had its signals jammed as it flew near the Russian border this week.
John Healey was travelling back to the UK from Estonia, where he had been visiting British soldiers, when the electronic attack happened, according to The Times.
It is thought Russia was behind the incident on Thursday, which meant that smartphones and laptops were unable to connect to the internet and pilots had to use a different navigation system as the plane’s GPS was disabled for the entire three-hour flight.
A defence source told The Independent: “This is reckless Russian interference, but the RAF is well prepared to deal with this activity.”
Read more:
GPS signals of RAF jet carrying defence secretary ‘jammed by Russia’
Missile attacks on Ukraine demonstrate Putin’s ‘weakness’, Cooper says
Sunday 24 May 2026 23:00 , Daniel Haygarth
Vladimir Putin’s attack on Kyiv and other cities has shown his “weakness”, foreign secretary Yvette Cooper said after Ukraine was hit by a hypersonic missile and drone barrage.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia used the hypersonic Oreshnik ballistic missile during the attacks.
Mr Zelensky said around 100 people were wounded in the attacks, with four killed, and he issued a fresh call for Ukraine’s allies to help with air defence weapons.
The Ukrainian leader said 90 missiles of various types and 600 drones were used by Russia.
“Unfortunately, not all of the ballistic missiles were intercepted – the largest number of hits was in Kyiv,” he said.
“Kyiv was the primary target of this Russian attack.”
He said the Oreshnik, which is capable of carrying nuclear or conventional warheads, struck the city of Bila Tserkva.
Ukraine’s foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said: “This strike was probably meant to demonstrate ‘strength’ to the domestic audience, but instead it only confirms Putin’s weakness.
“Even Russians see that he is a loser.”
Ms Cooper said: “Awful scenes in Kyiv and across Ukraine overnight after another massive Russian attack.
“I agree with Andrii – Moscow’s escalating assault on Ukrainian civilians betrays its weakness.”
Ukraine says it hit oil pumping station in Russia's Vladimir region
Sunday 24 May 2026 22:23 , Dan Haygarth
Ukraine's SBU security service said its drones attacked an oil pumping dispatch station in Russia's Vladimir region on Sunday, adding that the facility was an important node in pumping oil products southwest to Moscow and its surrounding area.
"It supplies fuel to major oil depots around Moscow and to Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, and Vnukovo airports," the SBU said in a statement on social media. It added that a fire over an area spanning 800 square metres (8,600 square feet) was recorded after the strike.
The governor of Vladimir Region, Alexander Avdeyev, said in a social media post that the fire near the town of Kameshkovo had been extinguished.
Avdeyev's post, quoted by Interfax news agency, referred only to the fire being at an infrastructure site and gave no indication that it was linked to the oil industry.
RAF jet carrying Defence Secretary has GPS signal jammed near Russian border
Sunday 24 May 2026 22:02 , Dan Haygarth
An RAF jet which the defence secretary was travelling in had its signals jammed as it flew near the Russian border.
John Healey had been visiting British soldiers in Estonia and was travelling back to the UK when the electronic attack happened, the Times first reported.
It is thought Russia was behind the incident on Thursday.
Smartphones and laptops were unable to connect to the internet and pilots had to use a different navigation system as the plane’s GPS was disabled for the entire three-hour flight.
It is not known if Mr Healey was deliberately targeted but the flight path was visible on aircraft tracking websites, the newspaper reported.
Passengers, who included photographers and a reporter, were told the Dassault Falcon 900LX aircraft could still operate safely.
The incident comes just days after the Ministry of Defence (MoD) revealed two Russian jets had been “repeatedly and dangerously” intercepted an RAF spy plane above the Black Sea.
A Russian Su-35 jet flew so close to the British reconnaissance aircraft that it triggered its emergency systems, including disabling the autopilot.
One of the nation’s Su-27s also flew six metres from the unarmed Rivet Joint’s nose and carried out six passes in front.
The MoD said it was the most dangerous Russian action against a British Rivet Joint aircraft since a plane fired a missile over the Black Sea in 2022.
In March 2024, an RAF plane carrying the then-defence secretary Grant Shapps had its GPS signal jammed while flying near Russian territory.
The satellite signal was interfered with for about 30 minutes while the flight was heading back to the UK from Poland.
Metsola says 'we will not be silent'
Sunday 24 May 2026 22:00 , Dan Haygarth
President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola says “we will not be silent”, after Russia attack.
Russia's latest indiscriminate attacks on Kyiv and Ukrainian cities have killed and injured yet more innocent people.
— Roberta Metsola (@EP_President) May 24, 2026
We will not be silent. These acts of brutality do not serve to strengthen Russia's hand. It weakens it.
The brave people of Ukraine remain resilient and Europe…
Russia hits Ukraine with Oreshnik missile in one of war's biggest attacks on Kyiv
Sunday 24 May 2026 20:00 , Dan Haygarth
Russia pounded Kyiv and surrounding areas with hundreds of drones and missiles on Sunday in one of the heaviest bombardments of the city since the start of the four-year war, firing an Oreshnik hypersonic missile near the capital, Reuters reports.
Russia's hours-long overnight barrage killed four people and wounded nearly 100, according to Ukrainian officials, and authorities said dozens of residential buildings and several schools had been damaged, many in the centre of Kyiv.
"It's important that this does not remain without consequences for Russia," President Volodymyr Zelensky said on the Telegram messaging app, urging Ukraine's allies to act. "Decisions are needed - from the United States, from Europe and others."
How Ukraine and Russia’s drone war spread into Europe as Putin ‘hijacks’ Kyiv’s weapons in mid-air
Sunday 24 May 2026 19:19 , Daniel Haygarth
Ukraine has developed unprecedented drone technology after being invaded by the Russian superpower, but now Moscow appears to be using the aircraft against Kyiv, threatening to cause chaos in Europe, reports Maira Butt. Read below.
How Ukraine and Russia’s drone war spread to Europe as Putin ‘hijacks’ Kyiv’s weapons
Zelensky praises emergency services as Ukraine deals with aftermath of deadly strikes in Kyiv
Sunday 24 May 2026 18:00 , Harriette Boucher
Ukraine's Kostyuk keeps focus in Paris after missile strike near parents' home
Sunday 24 May 2026 16:40 , Harriette Boucher
Hours after a Russian missile slammed near her family home in Kyiv, Marta Kostyuk walked onto the French Open clay on Sunday with photos of the blast fresh in her mind: shattered buildings metres from where her mother and sister had spent the night.
The 23-year-old, who advanced to the second round at Roland Garros, said she was overwhelmed with anxiety after receiving pictures of the damage close to the house where her mother, sister and aunt were staying.
“I felt sick just for the thought that if it was 100 metres closer, I probably wouldn’t have a mum and a sister today, Kostyuk told reporters after beating Oksana Selekhmeteva 6-2 6-3.
“Tennis is a mental game, but today it was something completely different. I didn’t know how my focus was going to be or if I would even be able to control my thoughts.”
Kostyuk said the strike came during a night of attacks that lasted several hours and left people exhausted and shaken.
Kyiv and surrounding areas were hit with hundreds of drones and missiles in one of the heaviest bombardments of the Ukrainian capital since Russia's invasion four years ago.
