Nato forced to scramble warplanes for 13th time in weeks after latest Putin attack

Vladimir Putin unleashed yet another round of bombardments on Ukraine – close to the borders of four Western nations – forcing Nato to scramble its warplanes.

It is the 13th time in a few weeks that the alliance has publicly admitted to deploying jets in response to a widespread Russian attack, but the number could be much higher.

Missiles and drones pounded the Ukrainian city of Ivano-Frankivsk – one of the heaviest attacks in the war – reaching between 60 and 105 miles from Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania. 

For the past two months, Russia’s nighttime strikes have strained Ukraine’s air defences, and last night was no different.

At least one person has been killed and seven others injured in Kyiv, where its 3.7 million residents are exhausted and on edge.

Explosions lit up the night sky as the high-pitched whine of drone engines echoed off the walls of the capital’s high-rise buildings.

Mayor Vitali Klitschko said rescuers and medics were working on sites in four districts.

A subway station in central Kyiv, commercial property, shops, houses and a kindergarten have been heavily damaged.

Footage shows the Lukianivska metro station filling with smoke and debris as residents who were shielded inside the makeshift bomb shelter scrambled for safety.

Ukraine’s air force said that Russia launched 426 drones and 24 missiles overnight across the country, but that only 23 drones hit their targets.

At the scene of a strike, dazed residents stood amid shattered glass and scorched walls, surveying the damage after a drone hit the lower floors of an apartment building.

In the region of Ivano-Frankivsk, several hundred miles west of Kyiv, four people including a 12-year-old boy were injured in the overnight attack, according to the state emergencies service.

Attack drones were also intercepted over the regions of Sumy, Kirovohrad, Khmelnytskyi, Mykolaiv, Poltava, and Kherson.

Volodymyr Zelensky said on X: ‘Throughout the night, Russia launched more than 420 drones and over 20 missiles, including ballistic ones.

‘The waves of attacks lasted all night and continued into the morning. In the morning, “shaheds” once again targeted the Kharkiv region.

‘During the shelling, mobile fire groups, army aviation, electronic warfare units, Air Force warriors, and interceptor drones were in action.

‘Many targets were shot down – but unfortunately, not all.’

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