Kyiv declares Day of Mourning following Russia's deadly attack

Russia unleashed a large-scale missile and drone assault on Ukraine early Thursday (August 28), killing at least 15 people, including four children, in Kyiv, where authorities declared 29 August a Day of Mourning and cancelled all public events.

Flags will be lowered on all municipal buildings, and authorities have recommended that national flags on state and private buildings also be flown at half-mast, Caliber.Az reports.

All entertainment and leisure events in the city have been cancelled for the day as the capital honours the victims of the attack.

Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko confirmed ongoing rescue operations in the Darnytskyi district after a deadly attack. He described the barrage as “one of the biggest attacks on the city in recent months.” 

As the sun rose on August 28, rescuers were still pulling bodies from the rubble of a partly destroyed apartment block on Kyiv’s left bank. A Reuters correspondent witnessed workers retrieving two bodies, while officials said at least 38 people were wounded in the hours-long assault that damaged buildings across seven districts, including the headquarters of the EU mission to Ukraine and the British Council.

Ukraine’s military reported Russian strikes on 13 locations nationwide, including energy facilities. “Russia chooses ballistics instead of the negotiating table,” President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on X, calling for fresh sanctions.

European Council President Antonio Costa wrote: “Horrified by yet another night of deadly Russian missile attacks on Ukraine... The EU will not be intimidated.”

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned the assault, saying: “Putin is killing children and civilians, and sabotaging hopes of peace.”

Ukraine said air defences destroyed 563 of nearly 600 drones and 26 of 31 missiles, though a strike on Vinnytsia left 60,000 without power. Russia’s Defence Ministry said its targets were “military industrial facilities and military air bases,” while also claiming its air defences had destroyed 102 Ukrainian drones overnight.

By Aghakazim Guliyev