Russia, Ukraine exchange missile attacks, officials say, killing at least 1 person in Kyiv

Russian missile attack on Kyiv kills one, injures nine; retaliation for Ukrainian strike with Western-supplied weapons.

“A Russian ballistic missile attack on Ukraine’s capital Kyiv early Friday (December 20, 2024) killed at least one person and injured nine others,” officials said, while Moscow claimed it was in response to a Ukrainian strike on Russian soil using American-made weapons.

“At least three loud blasts were heard in Kyiv shortly before sunrise. Falling missile debris caused damage and sparked fires in three districts,” the city administration said.

“The attack knocked out heating to 630 residential buildings, 16 medical facilities, and 30 schools and kindergartens,” it said.

The Russian Ministry of Defence said the strike was in response to a Ukrainian missile attack on Russia’s Rostov border region earlier Friday (December 20, 2024). “That attack used six American-made Army Tactical Missile System, known as ATACMS, missiles and four Storm Shadow air-launched missiles provided by the United Kingdom,” it said.

The use of Western-supplied weapons to strike Russia has angered the Kremlin. Ukraine fired several American-supplied longer-range missiles into Russia for the first time on November 19 after Washington eased restrictions on their use.

Answering Friday’s (December 20, 2024) Ukrainian attack, the Defense Ministry said it carried out a group strike with “high-precision, long-range weapons” on the command centre of Ukraine’s military intelligence agency and another location where it said Ukraine’s Neptune missile systems are designed and produced.

The attack also targeted Ukrainian ground-based cruise missile systems and U.S.-made Patriot air defence systems.