The motivation of our journalists remains intact. Their work is more important than ever.
In the early hours of a Sunday in May, Russia directed nearly seven hundred aerial weapons at Ukraine in a single night, with Kyiv bearing the heaviest burden of the assault. Four lives were lost and close to a hundred people wounded, among them children, while schools, homes, and a museum bearing witness to one of history's great nuclear catastrophes were struck or destroyed. The attack arrived not in isolation but as part of a long pattern — a war that has steadily expanded the vocabulary of what it means to bombard a civilian population. World leaders offered swift condemnation, and Ukraine's president once again called on the international community to match its words with the weapons needed to defend the sky.
- Russia launched 690 aerial weapons in a single coordinated night assault — cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, and hypersonic systems designed to outpace air defenses — making it one of the war's most concentrated attacks on Kyiv.
- Four people were killed and nearly a hundred wounded across Ukraine, including three children in the capital, while residential buildings, schools, the Chornobyl Museum, and offices of international organizations were struck or destroyed.
- The hypersonic Oréshnik system's deployment signals a deliberate effort to overwhelm Ukraine's existing defenses, exposing a widening gap between the firepower Russia can project and what Ukraine can intercept.
- Zelensky named Putin directly and renewed urgent calls for advanced air defense systems, warning that the weapons Ukraine currently holds are no match for this volume and sophistication of attack.
- International condemnations arrived rapidly from Germany, France, Italy, Canada, Spain, and the EU — a chorus of solidarity that has grown familiar over years of war, yet produced no immediate new military commitments on the day of the strike.
On the morning of May 24th, the full weight of the night became visible across Kyiv. Mayor Vitali Klichkó reported two dead and eighty-one wounded in the capital alone, including three children, with dozens hospitalized. Across Ukraine, the toll reached four killed and nearly a hundred hurt.
Russia had deployed 690 aerial systems in a single assault — cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, and the hypersonic Oréshnik, a weapon engineered to defeat air defenses through sheer speed. The scale was staggering even by the standards of a long and brutal war. Residential buildings and schools bore direct hits. The Chornobyl Museum, already a monument to catastrophe, was nearly destroyed. The National Art Museum and the Foreign Ministry building were also damaged. Blast waves shattered windows across the city center.
Among the international institutions struck was a building housing the World Health Organization and several UN agencies — debris damage, shattered windows, no staff injured. The German broadcaster ARD's Kyiv television studio was devastated, its walls collapsed and rooms destroyed, though no one was inside. Deutsche Welle's bureau chief noted that despite the difficult night, his team had returned to work that morning, their resolve undiminished.
President Zelensky condemned the attack in direct terms, accusing Putin of deliberately targeting homes and schools, and renewed his call for more sophisticated air defense systems and sustained international pressure. World leaders — from Macron to Merz to Meloni — responded with swift condemnation. The EU's Kaja Kallas called the strikes 'abominable acts of terrorism.' The solidarity was immediate and familiar. The weapons did not follow. For Ukraine, the night confirmed what the war has long been teaching: that the distance between condemnation and protection remains vast.
On Sunday morning, May 24th, the scale of the night's bombardment became clear as Kyiv's officials began their count. Four people dead across Ukraine. Nearly a hundred wounded. In the capital alone, two killed and eighty-one hurt, according to Vitali Klichkó, the city's mayor. Among the injured were three children, with thirty-one people admitted to hospitals, two of them minors.
Russia had unleashed six hundred ninety aerial weapons in a single coordinated assault. The Ukrainian Air Force broke down the arsenal: fifty-four cruise missiles, more than thirty ballistic missiles, and the hypersonic Oréshnik system—a weapon designed to defeat air defenses by traveling faster than sound in its final approach. Kyiv was the primary target, the military said, though the damage spread across the country.
The physical toll was immediate and visible. Dozens of residential buildings bore fresh scars. Several schools sustained direct hits. The Chornobyl Museum, already a place of historical weight, was nearly destroyed. The National Art Museum suffered damage. Even the Foreign Ministry building took hits, though lighter ones, according to Andrí Sibiga, Ukraine's chief diplomat. The blast waves alone had been enough to shatter windows and collapse walls across the city center.
President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the attack in stark terms, naming Vladimir Putin directly and accusing him of deliberately targeting apartment buildings and schools. He called for more air defense systems and renewed pressure on Russia from the international community. The message was clear: the weapons Ukraine had were insufficient against this volume and sophistication of fire.
International responses arrived quickly, though no additional military aid materialized that day. Germany's chancellor Friedrich Merz issued a statement. France's Emmanuel Macron called Zelensky directly. Italy's Giorgia Meloni condemned the strike. Canada's Mark Carney added his voice. Spain's José Manuel Albares spoke out. The European Union's Kaja Kallas called the attacks "abominable acts of terrorism." The condemnations were numerous and swift, a ritual of solidarity that had become familiar over the course of the war.
The World Health Organization reported that its office in Kyiv, which shares a building with multiple UN agencies, had been struck by debris. Windows on the third floor were shattered. No staff were injured. The German public broadcaster ARD and its affiliate Deutsche Welle both suffered significant damage. ARD's television studio in central Kyiv was devastated—windows blown out, rooms destroyed, walls collapsed—though no one was inside when the missiles came. Deutsche Welle's office took damage to windows and roof. Mykola Berdnyk, the bureau chief, noted that despite the difficult night, his team had returned to their desks that morning. "The motivation of our journalists on the ground remains intact," he said. "They know their work is more important than ever."
The attack underscored a pattern that had become routine: Russia's ability to mass firepower against civilian targets, and Ukraine's struggle to defend against it. Zelensky's plea for more air defense was not new. The damage to schools, homes, and cultural institutions was not unprecedented. But the scale—nearly seven hundred weapons in a single night—marked another escalation in a conflict that had already redefined what sustained bombardment of a capital city could mean.
Citações Notáveis
Russia continues to strike residential buildings with missiles, targeting schools and civilian infrastructure— President Volodymyr Zelensky
Despite the difficult night, our team returned to their desks this morning. Their work is more important than ever.— Mykola Berdnyk, Deutsche Welle bureau chief in Kyiv
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why does Russia keep targeting Kyiv specifically, when the front lines are hundreds of kilometers away?
Because Kyiv is the seat of power and the symbol of Ukrainian resistance. Hitting it damages morale, strains resources, and forces Ukraine to defend the capital instead of concentrating forces elsewhere. It's terror as strategy.
The Oréshnik missile—is that new?
It's a hypersonic system Russia has been developing for years. The significance is that it travels so fast that traditional air defenses struggle to intercept it. Ukraine's air defense network, already stretched thin, becomes less effective against it.
Four dead and nearly a hundred wounded—is that considered a large casualty toll for this kind of attack?
For a single night's bombardment, it's moderate in human terms but devastating in what it reveals. The real damage is structural and psychological. Schools destroyed, museums nearly leveled, international organizations hit. It's designed to break the will to resist.
Why did the journalists go back to work the next morning?
Because stopping work means the attack succeeded in its secondary aim—disrupting normal life, making people afraid to be in the city. Continuing is an act of defiance, but also practical. The story needs to be told.
What does Zelensky's call for more air defense actually mean?
It means Ukraine knows it cannot win this war without better tools. The weapons they have are being overwhelmed by the volume of incoming fire. Without resupply, the bombardment will continue, and eventually something will break.