Russia Fired 35 Missiles and 185 Drones at Ukraine, Killing 10 Around Kyiv: Russia launched another large overnight attack against Ukraine on August 1, concentrating ballistic missiles and drones on Kyiv and the surrounding region.
At least 10 people were killed across the capital and Kyiv Oblast, while dozens were injured, according to an early account of the strike and rescue effort.
The Army test fires a Patriot missile in a recent test. The Patriot missile system is a ground-based, mobile missile defense interceptor deployed by the United States to detect, track and engage unmanned aerial vehicles, cruise missiles, and short-range and tactical ballistic missiles. Patriot, along with other missile defense systems, are included in the Army Air and Missile Defense 2028, which provides the Army’s overarching vision for the AMD force, describes how the AMD force is postured to support the Army and joint forces, and articulates what must be accomplished to achieve the 2028 desired end state of preventing and defeating adversary air and missile attacks through a combination of deterrence, active and passive defense, and support to attack operations. (U.S. Army photo)
Patriot Missile Interceptor Test. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
What We Know About the Attack
Ukraine’s Air Force said Russian forces used 220 aerial weapons: 35 missiles and 185 drones of several types.
The missile group included four Zircon or Onyx weapons, 27 Iskander-M or S-400 ballistic missiles, two Kh-31 anti-radiation missiles, and two Kh-59 or Kh-69 guided missiles.
The official after-action report said 156 targets were destroyed or suppressed.
The missile defense result was much worse than the drone count suggested.
The Missile Defense Problem for Ukraine
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine intercepted only one of the 27 ballistic missiles because Patriot batteries lacked interceptors.
Russia’s attack damaged 18 residential buildings, a school, the Lithuanian Embassy, and infrastructure across seven Kyiv districts, according to Reuters’ updated casualty and damage report.
Seven people died in Darnytskyi district, and two were killed in Solomianskyi district. Another person was killed outside the capital in Kyiv Oblast. The Associated Press reported that emergency workers evacuated 35 people from the upper floors of a damaged five-story building.
Kyiv Took the Main Blow From Russia’s Attack
Explosions began around 1:30 a.m. and continued in waves.
Fires broke out in apartment buildings, vehicles, and nonresidential structures as police and firefighters moved through damaged neighborhoods.
Ballistic missiles can reach Kyiv within two to four minutes, leaving little time for residents to move after an alert begins.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said it struck military-industrial facilities and logistics centers in Kyiv. That claim was not independently verified.
The documented damage included homes, commercial property, a school, and diplomatic premises, while four children were among the injured.
Ukraine’s Patriot Shortage Is Now Driving the Casualty Count
Zelensky said every new package of ballistic-missile interceptors saves lives and linked the overnight deaths directly to empty Patriot magazines.
His August 1 statement renewed pressure on Washington and European governments to deliver immediately.
The shortage is especially dangerous because Russia has also altered some ballistic missiles to use terminal maneuvers intended to complicate interception.
Ukraine is developing domestic systems for the longer term, but cities still depend heavily on U.S.-made Patriot missiles.
Kyiv has also sought permission to manufacture Patriot interceptors with support from American industry. Zelensky described recent talks in Washington as productive, but President Donald Trump said Friday that no final licensing decision had been made.
That leaves the immediate defense tied to deliveries from existing allied inventories and production lines.
Russia Has Hit Kyiv Twice in 48 Hours
The August 1 barrage followed another large Russian attack two days earlier involving more than 70 missiles and 280 drones.
That operation killed at least 10 people across Ukraine, including members of one family near Kryvyi Rih, and sent a Russian cruise missile into Poland. The repeated strikes came after civilian casualties rose sharply during the first half of 2026.
Where the Russia-Ukraine War Stands on August 1
Ground combat continues along a front of roughly 1,200 kilometers. Russian advances have slowed by more than half this year, but Moscow is increasing pressure through repeated long-range attacks on Ukrainian cities.
Ukraine is answering with strikes on Russian oil, logistics, and weapons infrastructure, including facilities in Bashkortostan. That campaign has forced Russia to divide air defenses between the front and its interior.
Diplomacy has not produced an air ceasefire or a pause in the bombardment. Zelensky has discussed Patriot production and interceptor supply with President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, but no final American production license had been announced by Saturday morning.
As of publication, rescue teams were still clearing damaged buildings in Kyiv, hospitals were treating the wounded, and officials warned that the casualty figures could change as searches continued.
About the Author: Harry J. Kazianis
Harry J. Kazianis (@Grecianformula) was the former Senior Director of National Security Affairs at the Center for the National Interest, a foreign policy think tank founded by Richard Nixon in Washington, D.C. Harry has more than a decade of experience in think tanks and national security publishing. His ideas have been published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, CNN and many other outlets worldwide. He has held positions at CSIS, the Heritage Foundation, the University of Nottingham and several other institutions related to national security research and studies. He is the former Executive Editor of The National Interest and The Diplomat. He holds a master’s degree focusing on international affairs from Harvard University.
