New daytime airstrikes rock Kiev
Russia fires 11 missiles in the latest wave of heavy attacks on Ukraine
AIR defences were activated in the Ukrainian capital Kiev on Monday afternoon as the city was rocked by another round of Russian airstrikes, the military administration said.
According to the Ukrainian military, Russia fired a total of eleven missiles in the latest wave of heavy attacks on Kiev. Airstrikes have happened mostly at night or in the early morning hours — not in broad daylight.
At around 11:30 am, the Kiev region was hit with ballistic missiles and cruise missiles of the ground-based Iskander system, wrote Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, on Telegram on Monday.
All the projectiles were intercepted by air defences, he said. One person was injured, according to initial information.
The Russian Defence Ministry said the earlier night-time attacks were aimed at Ukrainian military airfields.
A DPA journalist in Kiev during the daytime airstrike reported hearing loud explosions and air raid alarms. In the sky over the city centre, numerous anti-aircraft missiles could be seen trying to destroy flying objects.
Kiev’s mayor Vitali Klitschko spoke on Telegram of explosions in central parts of the city. He also posted a photo of burning missile parts that fell in the middle of a street in the Obolon district.
Falling objects were also reported in other neighbourhoods. Rescue workers were on the scene. The authorities urged citizens to seek shelter.
Earlier on Monday, many people had been out on the streets of Kiev enjoying the early summer weather.
The afternoon aerial attack followed a fresh wave of Russian airstrikes on Ukraine overnight when more than 40 missiles were fired over Kiev alone, the military said earlier Monday. According to the Ukrainian air force, 29 combat drones and 37 cruise missiles were repelled throughout the country. The latest attacks follow the heaviest drone bombardment in months, with which russia overran the neighbouring country at the weekend. On Saturday night, Ukraine registered a record 54 kamikaze drones fired. There were deaths and injuries, including in Kiev.
Meanwhile, British intelligence experts said on Monday that the Russian military’s use of camouflage and deception manoeuvres have so far been generally ineffective in the war in Ukraine.
The British Ministry of Defence tweeted that on May 24, “Russia conducted a security exercise around the Crimea Bridge, which links the russian city of Kerch to the occupied peninsula. This included the creation of a smoke screen, partially masking the bridge.”
The Russian doctrine considers the use of smoke part of “maskirovka” (meaning camouflage and deception), it said.
The intelligence agency stated that the “Russian maskirovka has generally been ineffectual in the Ukraine war” because of a “lack of a strong central planning function and poor low-level battle discipline.”