KYIV — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday that a Russian cruise missile strike on a nine-story apartment block in Kyiv killed 24 people, including three children.
Zelenskyy wrote on X that emergency crews completed the search through the building’s rubble after more than a day of recovery operations. The Ukrainian air force said the missile struck a corner section of the residential block during what it described as Russia’s largest barrage since the start of the full-scale invasion.
The assault predominantly targeted the capital, Zelenskyy said, leaving 48 people wounded, two of them children. Ukrainian authorities said the strike was part of a sustained wave of aerial and drone attacks across the country.
The attacks came in the days after a May 9–11 cease-fire that U.S. President Donald Trump said he had urged both Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin to observe. Fighting nonetheless continued during that period, and this week’s strikes ran counter to recent comments from both leaders suggesting the war might be nearing an end.
Zelenskyy said Thursday that Moscow had launched more than 1,560 drones at Ukrainian population centers since Wednesday, damaging roughly 180 sites nationwide, including more than 50 residential buildings. He noted that the previous largest Russian drone assault occurred March 23–24, when nearly 1,000 drones and missiles were fired.
Kyiv observed an official day of mourning Friday to honor those killed in the attack.
Ukrainian investigators examining the wreckage determined the cruise missile that struck the apartment building was manufactured in the second quarter of this year. Zelenskyy said that finding indicates Russia is still acquiring components and equipment to produce missiles despite international sanctions and called on partners to prioritize stopping sanctions evasion.
Separately, Moscow and Kyiv carried out a prisoner exchange Friday: 205 servicemembers from each side were returned home. Zelenskyy said this was the first phase of a planned 1,000-for-1,000 swap; some of the released Ukrainians had been held since 2022 and had fought in some of the conflict’s fiercest battles.
Russia’s Defense Ministry confirmed the exchange and expressed gratitude to the United Arab Emirates for its role in facilitating the deal.