The confirmed death toll from Russia's overnight missile and drone barrage on Kyiv has reached at least 25, with more than 100 wounded, as rescue crews continued searching rubble across the capital and its suburbs [8][7][5]. Casualty figures varied across sources throughout the day, with reports ranging from 11 to 26 killed [9][6][12]. The July 6 attack, the second major strike on Kyiv in four days, came on the eve of the NATO summit in Ankara [8][11]. Mayor Vitali Klitschko described the assault as the most massive strike on the capital in recent times [2].
The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russia launched 23 ballistic missiles, 39 cruise missiles, six hypersonic Zircon anti-ship missiles, and 351 attack and decoy drones, with Kyiv as the primary target [8][6]. None of the 23 ballistic missiles were intercepted, a failure the Air Force attributed to a shortage of Patriot interceptor missiles [14][12]. Military expert Serhii "Flash" Beskrestnov, an adviser to Ukraine's defense minister, told Radio NV: "We simply don't have the missiles. We have nothing to use against ballistic missiles" [8][19].
The Russian Defense Ministry stated the strikes targeted military-industrial enterprises and fuel-energy facilities in Kyiv, including the Vizar defense plant specializing in air defense system maintenance, describing the bombardment as retaliation for what it called Ukrainian "terrorist attacks" on Russian civilian infrastructure [4][10][11][13]. The ministry also announced it had intercepted 116 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions within a 12-hour window [1]. Moscow warned that expanded Western military assistance would trigger more powerful retaliatory strikes [2].
Ukrainian officials, NATO leadership, and the United Nations rejected the military-targeting framing. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte described the strikes as "an indiscriminate attack on innocent civilians" [15]. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the attacks, stating that strikes involving civilians or civilian infrastructure "are a clear violation of international humanitarian law and must cease immediately" [12]. UN Humanitarian Coordinator Matthias Schmale said it was "unbearable to witness the scale of human suffering" [12]. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated that Ukraine urgently needs more air defense systems [11][26].
President Volodymyr Zelensky called for "strong decisions" at the NATO summit, stating that as long as Patriot missiles remain in allied stockpiles, Russia is encouraged to keep attacking residential buildings [6][15]. Zelensky said it was "simply absurd" that global production has not been scaled to protect people from ballistic terror, and proposed that Ukraine could manufacture Patriot systems under US license [7][17]. Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov appealed to nearly 40 partner countries to urgently transfer Patriot missiles from their stockpiles, stating that "bureaucracy must not become a barrier to protecting human life" [18][22].
The global shortage of Patriot interceptors has been worsened by the US-Iran war, which diverted Patriot stocks from Ukraine, according to Ukrainian military officials and East Asian press reporting [19][24][27]. South Korea's Chosun Ilbo reported that Lockheed Martin produces approximately 620 PAC-3 missiles per year, with production not expected to triple until 2030 [24]. Ukrainian Air Force spokesperson Yuri Ignat stated that Russia is exploiting the severe shortage of interceptor missiles in Ukraine and worldwide [13][19].
Residents of Kyiv and the suburb of Vyshneve described the attack as an attempt to terrorize civilians. Diana Liashchuk, a Vyshneve resident, said she called her mother during a secondary explosion: "I was terrified she would hear me die over the phone" [16]. Kate Vyshniak said her childhood home was destroyed: "My house is gone. Everything burned" [16]. Kyiv resident Oleksandr Seleznyov said he thinks "the Russians want to make Kyiv uninhabitable for civilians" [5]. Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko ordered the evacuation of 600 residents from Vyshneve due to the threat of secondary detonations [16][8].
The strike on Kyiv occurred amid a parallel exchange of long-range attacks. Ukrainian forces struck Russia's largest oil refinery in Omsk, hitting its primary refining unit, as well as refineries in Yaroslavl and shadow-fleet tankers supplying occupied Crimea [8][4]. Ukrainian General Staff and Security Service officials confirmed strikes on energy infrastructure in occupied Crimea, including aircraft hangars and a Pantsir-S2 air defense system [8]. A Crimea resident described conditions on the peninsula as "catastrophic" [3].
Russian officials acknowledged damage from Ukrainian strikes but characterized the effects as limited. President Vladimir Putin stated that fuel shortages exist but are "not critical" and "temporary" [21]. Omsk Governor Vitali Jotsenko confirmed drones hit the industrial center of northern Omsk [4][5]. Sevastopol's Moscow-appointed Governor Mikhail Razvozhayev announced the city was temporarily left without electricity following an attack on energy infrastructure [6]. CNN reported that over 50 of Russia's 83 regions face gasoline shortages, with rationing and long queues, and that Russia has started importing gasoline from India [21].
US President Donald Trump said the US is "getting much closer than people realise" to reaching a deal on ending the war, and that both Putin and Zelensky want it to end [15]. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Putin and Trump agreed their contacts will continue [15]. A senior US official said Trump would meet Zelensky to discuss ending the war [5].
Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz stated that Poland, spending 5% of GDP on defense, is a model NATO ally entitled to reciprocal loyalty, and expressed interest in transferring Patriot production lines from the US to Europe [30]. Poland's air force scrambled fighter jets to protect its airspace during the missile launches [8].
The NATO summit in Ankara, scheduled for July 7-8, is expected to address air defense support for Ukraine and defense spending among allies [23][26]. Costa Rica condemned the Russian attack and called for respect for international humanitarian law [29].