Russia unleashes another record drone attack on Ukraine, including near Polish border

Thomson Reuters

· Posted: Jul 09, 2025 7:16 AM EDT | Last Updated: 18 minutes ago

Russia targeted Ukraine with a grounds 728 drones overnight, soon aft U.S. President Donald Trump pledged to nonstop much antiaircraft weapons to Kyiv and aimed unusually nonstop disapproval astatine Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Ukrainian aerial defence units destroyed astir each the drones, including done physics jamming systems, Ukraine's aerial unit said connected the Telegram messaging app.

The attack, which follows a bid of escalating aerial assaults connected Ukraine successful caller weeks, showed the request for "biting" sanctions connected the sources of income Russia uses to concern the war, including connected those who bargain Russian oil, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said connected Telegram.

In a statement, Russia's Defence Ministry besides said that it had deed Ukrainian subject airfields successful strikes overnight.

WATCH l Russia whitethorn beryllium investigating Trump's patience, analysts say: 

Residents of Kyiv and different large cities spent the nighttime successful aerial raid shelters, including metro stations.

Part of Russia's overnight onslaught was aimed astatine a occidental portion adjacent to NATO-member Poland. The northwestern metropolis of Lutsk, immoderate 200 kilometres from Poland, was the main target, Zelenskyy said, listing 10 different provinces crossed the state wherever harm was besides reported.

Polish and allied craft were activated to guarantee aerial safety, the Operational Command of the Polish equipped forces said.

Buildings were damaged but nary deaths oregon injuries reported successful what amounted to the biggest airstrike of the warfare connected Lutsk, a metropolis of 200,000 people, determination authorities said.

A retention installation of a section endeavor and immoderate parking structures were ablaze, the politician of Lutsk, Ihor Polishchuk said.

Ivan Rudnytskyi, politician of the Volyn portion that includes Lutsk, said 50 Russian drones and 5 missiles were successful the region's airspace overnight.

"It was the astir monolithic force onslaught with UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles] and missiles connected our metropolis and community," Polishchuk said successful a societal media video.

Russia says civilians killed successful Kursk

In Russia, a Ukrainian drone onslaught connected a formation in Kursk killed 3 people, including a Russian serviceman engaged successful rescue operations, the acting politician of the portion said aboriginal connected Wednesday.

Alexander Khinshtein said connected the Telegram messaging app that the onslaught besides near 7 radical successful infirmary with superior injuries, including a five-year-old child.

Khinshtein said 1 of those killed was a subordinate of Russia's National Guard who had been trying to evacuate radical from the scene.

"He had arrived astatine the formation with his comrades aft radical began reporting astir the drone attack," Khinshtein said. "The elder sergeant had begun to evacuate radical erstwhile a 2nd detonation occurred. Unfortunately, helium did not survive."

Reuters could not independently verify the account, and the Ukraine authorities had yet to comment.

Ukrainian forces staged a ample incursion into the Kursk portion astir a twelvemonth ago. The Kremlin said earlier this twelvemonth each Kyiv's forces person since been ejected from the region, but Ukrainian officials accidental their troops are inactive carrying retired operations there.

Russia's defence ministry said connected Telegram that its aerial defence units destroyed 86 Ukrainian drones overnight implicit 9 Russian regions, including 23 drones implicit the Kursk region.

Russia and Ukraine person accused each different of targeting civilians successful the people of the war, present good into its 4th year. Both sides contradict the accusations, but thousands of civilians person been killed successful the conflict, the immense bulk of them Ukrainian.

Russia's Defence Ministry also said connected Wednesday that its forces person captured the colony of Tolstoi, successful Ukraine's eastbound Donetsk region.

Trump frustrated by halt connected Ukraine deliveries: report

Initial rounds of talks betwixt Russia and Ukraine during U.S. President Donald Trump's term have truthful acold borne small fruit, with Moscow yet to judge an unconditional ceasefire projected by Trump and accepted by Kyiv.

Trump, who returned to powerfulness this twelvemonth promising a swift extremity to the warfare successful Ukraine, has shifted U.S. rhetoric distant from staunch enactment for Kyiv towards accepting immoderate of Moscow's justifications for the full-scale penetration it launched successful 2022.

Trump, arsenic helium has periodically successful caller weeks, renewed disapproval of Vladimir Putin connected Tuesday, saying the Russian president's words had progressively been "meaningless," and not matched by enactment successful caller talks.

Trump said connected Tuesday helium was considering supporting a measure successful the Senate that would enforce steep sanctions connected Russia, including 500 per cent tariffs connected nations that bargain Russian oil, gas, uranium and different exports.

When asked by a newsman what enactment helium would instrumentality against Putin, Trump said: "I wouldn't archer you. We privation to person a small surprise."

The U.S. president has promised to proviso much antiaircraft weapons, which would reverse a Pentagon determination days earlier to stall immoderate captious munitions supplies to Ukraine.

Trump privately expressed vexation with Pentagon officials for announcing the pause successful deliveries that included some air defence missiles and precision-guided artillery, according to an Associated Press study citing three radical acquainted with the matter,  who spoke connected the information of anonymity astir the delicate interior discussions. Trump felt the move wasn't decently co-ordinated with the White House, per the report.

Two of the people said determination was immoderate interior absorption among Pentagon brass to the intermission — co-ordinated by Pentagon argumentation main Elbridge Colby — earlier it was announced.

One of the radical described Trump arsenic being caught "flat footed" by the announcement. The White House did not respond to queries astir whether Trump was amazed by the Pentagon pause.

In a connection to The Associated Press, Pentagon property caput Kingsley Wilson denied that Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth had acted without consulting the president.