Seven killed with many more 'trapped under the rubble' across Ukraine following Russian drone attacks

Taking to X on Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the latest Russian attacks lasted “throughout nearly the entire night” as he confirmed that 30 people were wounded across Ukraine.

The strikes caused fires to break out across Dnipro and partially destroyed several apartment buildings, businesses and a private house.

The bodies of four people were recovered from the ruins, according to Dnipropetrovsk regional head Oleksandr Ganzha.

Rescue workers continue to search for survivors, amid concerns civilians may still be trapped beneath the debris.

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In the southern Odesa region, drone strikes injured two people and damaged residential buildings, port infrastructure and vehicles, while attacks were also reported in the Kharkiv region.

In a statement on Telegram, Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 619 drones and 47 missiles overnight, one of the largest attacks in recent days.

However, Ukraine stated the majority of the drones and missiles were intercepted.

The attacks also spilled beyond Ukraine’s borders into neighbouring NATO member Romania.

Romanian authorities said they were investigating the fall of an object near the border city of Galați during the strikes. Debris was later recovered in a residential area, causing minor damage to property but no casualties.

Two RAF Typhoon fighter jets were scrambled from a base in Romania overnight after drones were detected near its airspace, as part of NATO’s enhanced air policing mission.

Initial reports suggested British jets may have shot down Russian drones, but both UK and Romanian officials later clarified this was incorrect.

British defence sources said the fighter jets did not enter Ukrainian airspace, nor did they engage with any potential targets, contradicting reports that Russian drones had been shot down by the RAF. No drones entered Romanian airspace.

Meanwhile, in Russia, a woman was killed and a man was seriously wounded by a drone strike in the border region of Belgorod, local officials said.

The attacks followed a prisoner swap on Friday, in which Russia and Ukraine exchanged 193 service members, its 73rd prisoner exchange since the start of the full-scale war.

Russia has continued to launch nightly waves of drone attacks on Ukrainian cities, occasionally escalating to large-scale strikes involving hundreds of drones and missiles.

The latest strikes come as Ukraine signals it remains open to further peace talks. Speaking after a meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Mr Zelenskyy said Kyiv would be willing to hold negotiations if Russia is prepared to engage.

“We have already held such talks – in Turkey and with our American partners in Switzerland,” he said.

“We are also ready for upcoming negotiations in Azerbaijan, if Russia is ready for diplomacy.”