Russia&rsquo;s Overnight Drone Blitz Leaves Two Dead in Ukraine's West
In a chilling escalation of its air campaign, <a title="Russia" href="https://www.benefitnews24.com/international/russia-strikes-ukraine-as-u-s-halts-aid-zelenskyy-warns/7646" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Russia</a> unleashed a wave of drone and missile strikes across <a title="Ukraine" href="https://www.benefitnews24.com/geo-politics/trump-putin-hold-call-amid-ukraine-war-escalation/13033" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ukraine</a> overnight, killing at least two people and injuring over a dozen more. The attacks, which struck multiple cities from Kharkiv in the northeast to Chernivtsi in the southwest, have intensified fears of a prolonged and more brutal phase in the more than three-year-old conflict.
The worst of the devastation was reported from Chernivtsi&rsquo;s Bukovina region, nestled in Ukraine&rsquo;s southwest, where four drones and a missile tore through civilian zones. The assault left a trail of destruction &mdash; setting off fires, toppling buildings, and claiming the lives of a 26-year-old woman and a 43-year-old man, both believed to have been killed by falling drone debris.
As rescue teams combed through the rubble, it became evident that this was no isolated incident. Over the course of the night, Russia launched an extraordinary 26 cruise missiles and nearly 600 drones across Ukrainian territory &mdash; many of them Iranian-made Shaheds. Ukrainian air defences managed to intercept a significant number of these, but the sheer volume of the assault overwhelmed several regions.
Lviv and Lutsk, both major cities in western Ukraine, also bore the brunt of the aerial onslaught. In Lviv, a drone slammed into a residential building in the Zaliznychnyi district, tearing down its entrance, triggering a gas leak, and setting the roof ablaze. Nearby structures, including a kindergarten, suffered collateral damage. Emergency crews battled flames and shored up structures as families were evacuated into the early hours of the morning.
In Lutsk, explosions rocked neighbourhoods as a private house was engulfed in flames and completely destroyed. Firefighters worked into the dawn to douse the blaze and recover belongings. While no casualties were immediately reported there, the psychological scars of the attack were evident on stunned residents picking through the remains of their homes.
Meanwhile, Kharkiv came under heavy fire once again, with at least ten separate strikes recorded during the night. Russian forces used a combination of eight combat drones and two guided aerial bombs to pummel the city, continuing a relentless barrage that has battered Ukraine&rsquo;s second-largest city for months.
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The ongoing drone and missile blitz &mdash; targeting residential buildings, local businesses, public infrastructure, and even kindergartens &mdash; has cast a long shadow over international efforts to broker peace. With damage recorded in at least four key regions and more than 20 injured receiving emergency medical care, the scale and spread of the latest Russian strikes underscore a grim reality: the war is far from over.
As rescue workers sift through debris and families mourn their loved ones, Ukraine braces for the possibility of further attacks. The skies remain hostile, and for now, peace remains elusive.

Ukraine Emergency and Fire services dousing fire after Russian air strike

Wave of kamikaze drones and missiles devastates Ukraine’s west, killing two, injuring dozens

Russia’s Drone Blitz Kills Two in Chernivtsi

Wave of kamikaze drones and missiles devastates Ukraine’s west, killing two, injuring dozens

July 12, 2025 | 20:29 IST