Russia launches 15th air assault on Kyiv in May

Several explosions shook the Ukrainian capital early on Monday, May 29, city officials said, in what was Russia’s 15th air assault on the city in May and second overnight attack in a row.

“A missile shot down near Kyiv,” Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on the Telegram messaging channel. “Air defense working!”

He added that blasts were heard in several districts of the city, including Kyiv’s historic neighborhood of Podil where falling debris damaged a roof on a house.

According to preliminary information from Klitschko and the city’s military administration, there were no casualties in the overnight attacks.

The Monday attack, appearing to be a combination of missile and drones, follows the largest drone barrage launched on Kyiv the previous night, which killed one person and injured several. Waves of attacks now come several times a week.

The full scale of the Monday attack was not immediately known. Reuters witnessed said they heard several loud blasts when the city and all of Ukraine were under air raid alerts in early Monday hours.

With a long-promised Ukrainian counteroffensive looming to recapture territory taken by Russia in the 15th months of the war, Moscow has intensified its attacks, targeting military infrastructure and supplies.

While Ukraine almost never publicly claims responsibility for attacks inside Russia, a series of strikes inside the country have targeted military, energy and transport infrastructure, with Moscow blaming Kyiv for the attacks. – Rappler.com