Key Points – Russia launched one of its most intense air assaults of the war against Ukraine overnight on Monday, June 16th, killing at least 15 people and injuring over 100.
-The barrage, involving over 440 drones and 32 missiles, hit dozens of civilian areas, with Kyiv bearing the brunt of the attack where a 9-story apartment block collapsed.
-Speaking from the G7 summit in Canada, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the assault as “pure terrorism” and pleaded for more weapons and sanctions.
-The attack comes as peace talks have stalled and US political attention appears distracted by the Middle East.
Forget Iran: The War in Ukraine Keeps Getting Worse
Some 15 people have been killed and over 100 others injured following a major Russian assault on Ukraine yesterday night. The barrage struck dozens of civilian areas in one of Moscow’s boldest assaults since their 2022 invasion.
Kyiv Hit Hardest
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said over 440 drones and 32 missiles plunged toward Ukrainian cities in waves, with Kyiv bearing the brunt of the damage.
In the Solomianskyi district an entire 9-story apartment block collapsed due to a missile hit.
Emergency workers pulled victims from the rubble, including an elderly woman rescued by crane from an adjacent flat. 27 sites were hit in total, including schools and homes.
“This is pure terrorism,” Zelenskyy said from the G7 summit in Canada, where he’s lobbying for tighter sanctions on Moscow and more weapons. He went on to complain that Putin thought he could “get away with it”. He also called the fresh destruction in Kyiv “some of the most horrific” since 2022. Locals are shaken.
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” said 57-year-old Viktoriia Vovchenko, standing near the wreckage. “Elderly people, children… all torn up. How long can they keep torturing us?”
Civilians Under Fire
Ukraine has targeted Russian military sites with drones. This has included strikes deep inside Russian territory, but there has been nothing on this scale targeting civilians. Russia’s Defense Ministry claims to have shot down 147 Ukrainian drones overnight.
And it’s not just aerial warfare. Russian forces are pushing hard on the eastern front and have now opened a new offensive in the northeast, around Sumy — even as calls for a ceasefire grow louder. Two recent rounds of peace talks in Istanbul went nowhere.
Washington Distracted by Middle East Chaos
Meanwhile, U.S. support is looking less certain. Former President Donald Trump, attending the G7 as the Republican frontrunner, left the summit early, reportedly due to Middle East tensions.
Trump has distanced himself from Ukraine’s cause and openly called for Russia to be re-admitted to the G7, a move widely viewed as legitimizing Putin’s aggression.
The war is now crawling in its fourth year with the pace of casualties increasing on both sides. Independent Russian outlet Mediazona, working with the BBC’s Russian service, has confirmed at least 111,387 Russian military deaths based on publicly available records.
However, they caution the true toll is far higher, as many deaths are not formally acknowledged by Russian authorities.
Whatever the case, the peace Trump vowed to broker increasingly seems like a far-flung prospect.
About the Author:
Georgia Gilholy is a journalist based in the United Kingdom who has been published in Newsweek, The Times of Israel, and the Spectator. Gilholy writes about international politics, culture, and education.
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pagar
June 17, 2025 at 4:55 pm
The time has arrived for someone to use nukes to put an end to the current conflict between nazist forces and anti-nazist forces in eastern ukraine.
Let’s all be clear on one thing – the fighting isn’t over Ukraine, but over eastern ukraine.
So, can somebody employ nukes to clear eastern Ukraine of non-nazis, or can somone use nukes to clear eastern ukraine of nazis.
So, one must make up one’s mind, now, today. In 2025.
No more hesitancy.Use nukes now.
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