What Happened
Emergency services personnel work to extinguish a fire following Russian missile attacks in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, July 6, 2026. Danylo Antoniuk/AP hide caption
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia launched waves of missiles and drones Monday, killing at least 12 people in an attack that exposed widening gaps in Ukraine's air defenses, authorities said.
ballistic missiles launched by Russia struck their targets, underscoring Kyiv's Patriot interceptor missiles — a point Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will likely reiterate at a NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, this week. The attack Zelenskyy warned that a large-scale attack was imminent.
Ukraine invasion — explained Inside a secretive Ukrainian team launching deep drone strikes at Russia A further 60 people were wounded, according to Zelenskyy, as emergency workers combed through rubble looking for survivors at residential high- locations that suffered direct hits.
Why It Matters
Days earlier, on Thursday, a Russian strike killed 31 people in Kyiv, the deadliest for the capital this year. Russia's Defense Ministry said the bombardment was retaliation for Ukraine's recent long-range strikes, which have caused severe fuel shortages and pressured President Vladimir Putin.
Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of its neighbor, Ukraine's advances in drone technology recent months, analysts and Western officials say. Strikes on supply routes behind stripped the Russian army of momentum on the battlefield, they say, slowing its advance and driving .
But Russia is now exploiting a different kind of momentum: vulnerabilities in Ukraine's air defenses, which remain heavily reliant on the U.S. Patriot systems to intercept ballistic missiles it can rarely . Middle East has strained the global supply of Patriot interceptors, already produced in limited numbers — a shortage Ukraine.
Rescuers a building damaged by Russian missile attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, July 6, 2026. Efrem Lukatsky/AP hide caption
What Comes Next
Ukraine's Russia fired 351 drones and 68 missiles overnight, targeting mainly Kyiv, and all 29 ballistic missiles struck their targets.
"To intercept ballistics, interception," air force spokesman national television. "Russians are certainly a serious deficit of interceptor missiles now, in Ukraine ."
summit in Ankara, Zelenskyy said on X that Ukrainian forces had performed well against drones and cruise missiles but not against Russian ballistic missiles — a shortfall he blamed on insufficient interceptor supplies. He urged U.S. and European partners summit with strong decisions to bolster Ukraine's air defense and protect civilian lives.
" Patriot missiles remain in our allies' stockpiles, Russia is only encouraged to keep 'vanquishing' residential buildings. The United States and Europe have enough strength terror," a statement following the attack.
Russia's Defense Ministry said the attack targeted weapons factories in Kyiv, including produce drones, sea drones, armored vehicles and missiles, facilities repairing air defense systems energy infrastructure surrounding region. The claims independently verified.
Russia's aerial attacks on Ukraine have repeatedly hit civilian areas. More than 16,000 Ukrainian civilians have been killed , according to the United Nations.
"These are residential buildings. Places where people ordinary lives," said Tymur Tkachenko, 's Military Administration, in a post on Telegram.
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