Explosions and the whoosh of air defence missiles being launched rattled Kyiv early on Thursday in the latest of a series of Russian aerial assaults on the Ukrainian capital this month.

The early morning duel in the sky over Kyiv between air defences and missiles was the ninth attack on the capital this month, in what one Ukrainian official called an “unprecedented” string of strikes. The city was targeted with several cruise missiles, all of which were shot down by air defences, local officials said.

Debris from an intercepted missile fell in one neighbourhood of the capital and caused a fire, said Serhiy Popko, the city’s military administrator, in a post on social media. There were no immediate injuries, he said. The flurry of missiles was followed by reconnaissance drones deployed over the capital, he added.

“A series of air attacks on Kyiv, unprecedented in its power, intensity and variety, continues,” Popko said in a post on the messaging app Telegram.

Missile strikes were also launched overnight on the southern port city of Odesa, where one got past air defences and hit an industrial infrastructure target, city officials said. One civilian was killed and two others were injured, according to the Ukrainian military’s southern command. Air defences intercepted 29 of 30 missiles fired at Ukraine overnight.

Kyiv has been subject to attack after attack in recent weeks, after a period of calm. Thursday’s assault came after Russian and US officials had said earlier this week that a Patriot missile system shielding the city from ballistic missiles had been damaged in an earlier barrage.

New York Times News Service