Escalating Air Strikes: Russia Targets Ukraine's Heart

Sat Sep 13 2025 10:51:56 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

Recent Russian air strikes on Ukraine have intensified dramatically, striking a key government building in Kyiv and resulting in high civilian casualties in the Donbas region.

Ukraine witnesses an escalation in Russian air strikes, with a recent attack hitting a government building in Kyiv, identified as using a Russian Iskander cruise missile. The attack comes amid rising civilian casualties, including a deadly strike that killed 24 people in Donbas as they queued for pensions. Ukrainian officials condemn these actions, urging allies for stronger sanctions and increased military support.

Ukraine has shown reporters fragments of the missile it says hit a key government building in Kyiv this weekend, identifying it as a Russian Iskander cruise missile. Officials now believe the building was struck deliberately in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Vladimir Putin's response to Donald Trump's peace efforts has been a clear escalation in Russian attacks. But they don’t only target the Ukrainian capital; in the eastern Donbas region, more than 20 civilians were killed by a Russian glide bomb on Tuesday as they queued to collect their pensions.

Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the strike on the village of Yarova as savage and called once again on Ukraine's allies to increase the pressure on Moscow through sanctions. His office said some U.S. and European weapons components are still reaching Russia, including for the Iskander missile. Moscow has substituted the rest with its own production. Strong actions are needed to make Russia stop bringing death, Ukraine's president wrote.

Our team was filming during the air raid on central Kyiv and captured the moment the cabinet of ministers was hit. There is no indication of the missile being intercepted by air defenses. The damage is significant, with the roof and part of the walls blown apart in the area struck.

The missile, packed with over 100 kg (220 lbs) of explosives, did not detonate, limiting damage to three floors. Fragments of the missile collected as evidence show it remains consistent with Russian technology.

The increase in early morning attacks is evident; they are more frequent and larger in scale. Russia now launches hundreds of drones at a time, deliberately draining Ukraine's resources. President Zelensky continues to call for more missiles, emphasizing that for those in the capital, it could mean the difference between life and death.

Recent tactics include deadly glide bombs targeting civilian areas. The attack in Yarova claimed the lives of elderly individuals who are often less able to evacuate during intense fighting. Ukrainian officials classified the incident as a barbaric strike and a heinous crime against the people Putin claimed he wanted to save.

Ukraine continues to seek not just condemnation but active measures against the Russian economy and defense sector. Despite sanctions, Vladimir Zelensky's adviser highlighted that some Western-made components still appear in Russian missiles. The urgent need for enhanced military support remains a core plea from Ukraine's leadership as they confront intensified violence from Russia.