At least 13 killed in Kyiv as Ukraine grapples with air defence shortages

Firefighters work at a site hit by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv on 20 August.
August 20, 2026

LATEST NEWS

At least 13 killed in Kyiv as Ukraine grapples with air defence shortages

At least 13 people have been killed and 40 injured in the latest Russian strikes targeting the Ukrainian capital, Ukraine’s prime minister said, as Kyiv continues to face a shortage of air defence missiles.

Apartment blocks and warehouses were struck across the city overnight, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine said, while a children’s hospital and school were also damaged.

The deaths were the result of a shortage of air defence missiles, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, which Kyiv relies on western allies to supply.

Ukrainian MP Oleksiy Goncharenko told the BBC that Ukraine is “absolutely unprotected” from ballistic missile attacks and “can’t do anything” without interceptors.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he said: “Russia is using this trying to destroy as much infrastructure as possible.

“For us it’s very painful because we are dying here every day without these interceptors.”

Writing on Telegram, Zelensky said “as long as Ukraine does not have enough anti-ballistics, Russia will not seriously think about peace”.

He added: “The interceptors for the Patriots have not yet been replaced, and they are needed every day. Each additional missile saves the lives of our people.”

An update released by the Ukrainian Air Force on Thursday morning implied that none of the Russian ballistic missiles used overnight were intercepted.

The Russian defence ministry said it used air, land and sea-based weapons to target military facilities and warehouses.

Ukraine has relied on American supplies of Patriot interceptor missiles to combat Russian ballistic missiles, but the US has used much of its stockpile during the war in the Middle East and has been supplying Ukraine with less.

Share this post:

POLL

Who Will Vote For?

Other

Republican

Democrat

RECENT NEWS

A photo of a pontoon at Dongo on Lake Como from 2011.

British man missing after diving into Lake Como to rescue father and son

Alisher Usmanov, a middle aged man wearing glass and a dark suit, adjusts his tie while looking upwards

Ukraine anger as EU removes Russian oligarchs from sanctions list

US President Donald Trump shakes hands with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen as they attend a trilateral signing event

US to build two military bases in Greenland under new deal with Denmark

Dynamic Country URL Go to Country Info Page