Outrage as Russian attacks on Ukraine cities kill at least nine civilians

This article is published in association with United Nations.

Grim details continued to emerge on Thursday in the aftermath of a wave of Russian attacks on the Ukrainian capital and other cities overnight, with early reports indicating that at least nine people were killed and dozens injured.

The latest Russian strikes reportedly damaged 12 buildings in the capital, causing widespread damage to homes, businesses and key services, while phones have been heard ringing from the rubble.

Other Ukrainian cities targeted included Zhytomyr – due west of Kyiv – and the northeastern cities of Sumy –  where a daytime missile strike killed at least 34 people on 13 April – and Kharkiv – where the authorities reported 24 drone and missile strikes in total.

“The casualty count is expected to rise as emergency teams continue search-and-rescue operations,” said the UN aid coordination office, OCHA.

The development follows Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s reported decision on Wednesday to reject a US-led proposal to seek a peace deal with Russia that would have involved ceding territory lost during the war. In theory, this would include the eastern Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, in addition to Crimea, which Russia annexed illegally in 2014.

“Last night’s large-scale attack by the armed forces of the Russian Federation on residential areas in Kyiv and surrounding regions is yet another appalling violation of international humanitarian law,” said the UN’s top aid official in Ukraine, Matthias Schmale.

Children and a pregnant woman were among the more than 70 people injured by Wednesday night’s reported missile and drone strikes. “This senseless use of force must stop… Civilians must never be targets”, insisted Mr. Schmale, UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine.

Spike in civilian attacks

Echoing that message, the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, appealed for an end to the use of explosive weapons in civilian areas which have caused a marked rise in attacks on civilian areas this year.

According to the UN human rights office, OHCHR, at least 164 civilians were killed in March and 910 injured across Ukraine. This represents a 50 per cent increase from February 2025.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, OCHA reported that drone and glide bomb attacks had struck densely populated areas “throughout the country”, while fighting in front-line regions has killed more civilians.

Cities targeted included Zaporizhzhia, where a glide bomb strike on Tuesday left one person dead and injured more than 40 others, including seven children and a pregnant woman, OCHA said. Several apartment buildings were damaged in the attack on the city which is near to the front line and home to 630,000 people, including many displaced from other regions.

The UN aid office also reported overnight drone strikes on Wednesday in the regions of Dnipro, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Poltava and Odesa, damaging a hospital, homes, warehouses and an energy facility.

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‘Deeply disturbing trend’

“The scenes of destruction and suffering in Kyiv this morning reflect a deeply disturbing trend – civilians bearing the brunt of ever more intense and frequent attacks,” said Danielle Bell, head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine.

According to the mission, from 1 to 24 April, at least 848 civilian casualties have been verified – 151 killed and 697 injured – marking a 46 per cent increase compared to the same period last year. The organisation expects the real toll to rise further as more reports are confirmed.

Thirty-one civilians were killed, including two boys aged 11 and 17. At least 80 more were injured, including 14 children. Many victims had been on a city bus destroyed in the blast.

Ms. Bell visited survivors in hospital, recounting their harrowing experiences. “One, aged 62, was on a bus with her husband on their way to church when the second missile exploded. He was killed and she sustained a devastating head injury. Another, aged 64, was on her way to the market; she now faces multiple operations.”

As April draws to a close, the UN is urging greater international attention to the rising toll on non-combatants, warning that the current trajectory is fuelling a severe humanitarian crisis.