5 Ballistic Missiles, 117 Drones: Ukraine Repels Massive Russian Overnight Attack

Ukraine’s Air Force said its forces intercepted or suppressed 161 Russian aerial targets during a massive overnight attack, including five ballistic missiles, 39 cruise missiles and 117 attack drones. As per the report on Telegram, Russia launched the combined attack from 6 p.m. on Oct. 6, using ballistic, cruise and anti-ship missiles alongside 130 strike drones.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. Among the ballistic weapons used were Russian Iskander-M, S-400 and North Korean KN-23 missiles, as well as Zircon and Onyx missiles. Ukraine’s air defenses shot down or suppressed five ballistic missiles, marking a significant interception of weapons that are generally more difficult to counter than cruise missiles and drones. The Air Force said it also intercepted 39 cruise missiles, including Kh-101, Iskander-K and Kalibr missiles. Information on another six cruise missiles was still being verified as of 9 a.m. Ukrainian forces additionally shot down or suppressed 117 attack drones, including 38 jet-powered Shahed-type drones, as well as Gerbera and other unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Russia launched the attack from multiple directions, including the Rostov, Bryansk and Voronezh regions, the Caspian Sea, and occupied areas of the Donetsk region and Crimea. The primary targets were the Kyiv, Kharkiv, Poltava and Dnipropetrovsk regions. The attack involved Ukrainian aviation, anti-aircraft missile units, electronic warfare and unmanned systems units, as well as mobile fire groups, the Air Force said. Other Topics of Interest Kim Jong Un Calls Russia’s War in Ukraine ‘Sacred’ in Putin Birthday Message North Korea’s leader pledged “invariable support” for Putin as Pyongyang sends troops to fight alongside Russian forces. Despite the reported interceptions, Russian missiles and attack drones struck 18 locations, while debris from intercepted targets fell at five locations. The latest Air Force figures came as Ukrainian authorities reported casualties and damage in several regions following the overnight attack. Russia launched a massive overnight missile and drone attack across Ukraine, killing at least nine people as of 9.46 a.m. and damaging residential buildings and civilian infrastructure in several cities. Kyiv was attacked with ballistic missiles in several waves, with the first salvo launched shortly after 3 a.m. Two people were killed in the capital, while impacts were recorded in four districts. Kremenchuk in the Poltava region was also heavily hit, with Russian missiles striking a residential area and damaging apartment buildings and private homes. Two people were killed, according to preliminary information from the regional authorities. An industrial facility in the area was also struck. In Pryluky, Chernihiv region, a Russian missile hit a five-story apartment building, severely damaging the structure and causing a large section to collapse, according to local reports and published images. Emergency crews were searching the rubble for residents, with four fatalities reported. Strikes were also reported against industrial or civilian infrastructure in Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia, while Oleksandriia in the Kirovohrad region reported damage to critical infrastructure. A woman was killed and three people were injured in Oleksandriia, while contact was temporarily lost with two others, according to Mayor Serhiy Kuzmenko. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 90% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.