Ukraine: Russia launched biggest aerial attack

KIEV

Russia launched its biggest aerial attack against Ukraine overnight, a Ukrainian official said on June 29, part of an escalating bombing campaign that has further dashed hopes for a breakthrough in efforts to end the 3-year-old war.

Russia fired a total of 537 aerial weapons at Ukraine, including 477 drones and decoys and 60 missiles, Ukraine’s air force said. Of these, 249 were shot down and 226 were lost, likely having been electronically jammed.

Yuriy Ihnat, head of communications for Ukraine’s air force, told the Associated Press that the overnight onslaught was “the most massive air strike” on the country, taking into account both drones and various types of missiles. The attack targeted regions across Ukraine, including western Ukraine, far from the frontline.

Pointing to the bombardment, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky argued they showed that his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin "has long decided to pursue this war, despite the international community's calls for peace."

"Ukraine must reinforce its aerial defense, which is the best way to protect lives," he added, repeating his willingness to buy U.S.-made Patriot anti-missile systems.

Since launching its invasion in February 2022 Russia has launched near-nightly bombardments of its neighbor’s towns and cities, raining down drones and missiles on military and civilian targets alike.

Talks on ending the fighting between the two sides are at an impasse, with Kiev accusing Moscow, which occupies nearly one-fifth of Ukraine's territory, of wanting the war to drag on.

U.S. President Donald Trump, who has tilted Washington's policy on the war in favor of Moscow since retaking office, has not responded to Kiev's request.

In the central Cherkasy region, the Russian strikes wounded a total of six people, including a child, the Ukrainian police said on Telegram.

Far from the frontline in the western Ivano-Frankivsk region, the strikes likewise wounded a woman who was "taken to hospital," according to the regional governor Svitlana Onyshchuk.

Besides the civilian casualties, a fighter pilot was killed in the night after his F-16 jet was damaged in mid-air "without him having the time to eject," according to an air force statement.

Paying the pilot his respects, Zelensky said he was working to shoot down Russian projectiles before his death.

In the morning after the nighttime strikes, a Russian drone attack killed a 60-year-old man after hitting his car in the northwest Kharkiv region, where the Russian army is on the march, according to the authorities.

For its part the Russian army said it had intercepted three Ukrainian drones in the night of Saturday to Sunday.