Russia hits Kyiv and Boryspil airports in overnight missile and drone attack
Russia struck Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast overnight on 5 September with ballistic missiles and a large drone salvo, damaging airports in Kyiv and Boryspil, residential buildings and civilian infrastructure. Five people were killed in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast in the same wave of attacks. President Zelensky suggested the strikes on the airports may be a Kremlin reaction to discussions of a US visit to Ukraine.
Key points
- Russia launched 167 strike drones (Shahed, Gerbera and decoy "Parodia" types) and Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missiles overnight on 5 September.
- Air defence shot down or suppressed 128 drones by 08:30, with hits or debris recorded at 24 locations.
- Airports in Kyiv and Boryspil were damaged in the strikes; a 9-storey residential building in Boryspil had its roof and top floor destroyed.
- Two women were injured in Boryspil and 15 residents were evacuated; fires broke out at a warehouse in Bucha district and in ecosystems in Obukhiv district from falling debris.
- In Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, nearly 30 attacks on four districts killed 5 people and wounded 5; an industrial site in Kamianske was damaged and 5 September declared a day of mourning there.
- The General Staff reported 236 combat clashes the previous day, most heavily on the Pokrovsk (40) and Kostiantynivka (21) axes.
- NABU and SAP exposed a criminal organisation inside the Office of the Prosecutor General; five people have been named as suspects.
Why it matters
The combined missile-and-drone strike on airports in the capital region highlights the vulnerability of civilian and transport hubs to Russia's nighttime aerial campaign. Civilian casualties and damage to a residential building in Boryspil and to an industrial site in Kamianske underline the continued risk to non-military targets. Zelensky's public link between the strikes and the diplomatic track ties an operational attack to the broader US–Ukraine–Russia negotiating channel, while the reported scale — over 160 drones launched with more than 120 intercepted — shows the intensity Russia is sustaining. The attack occurred alongside 236 combat clashes in a single day, illustrating that the air campaign and the ground fight are running simultaneously.
What happened
Russia struck Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast overnight on 5 September with ballistic missiles and 167 strike drones, including Shahed, Gerbera and decoy "Parodia" types, launched from Orel, Millerovo, Kursk, occupied Donetsk and occupied Crimea. Ballistic Iskander-M/KN-23 missiles were fired from Russia's Rostov and Voronezh oblasts. By 08:30, air defence had shot down or suppressed 128 drones; hits or debris were recorded at 24 locations. Airports in Kyiv and Boryspil were damaged. In Boryspil, a 9-storey residential building lost its roof and top floor and caught fire; two women were hospitalised and 15 residents were evacuated. Fires broke out at a warehouse in Bucha district, with rescuers hit by a repeat strike on a nearby building during firefighting, and in ecosystems in Obukhiv district from falling debris. In Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, nearly 30 attacks on four districts killed 5 people and wounded 5; an industrial site in Kamianske was damaged and 5 September was declared a day of mourning. Separately, NABU and SAP said they had exposed a criminal organisation inside the Office of the Prosecutor General and named five suspects.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Both Ukrainian sources centre the domestic human and infrastructure consequences of the night — the damaged residential building and evacuations in Boryspil, the injured civilians, and the fires in Bucha and Obukhiv districts — and prominently carry President Zelensky's framing that the airport strikes may be a Kremlin reaction to discussions of a US visit to Ukraine. They also foreground Ukrainian defensive performance, including the number of drones intercepted, and the General Staff's daily combat and loss figures, presenting the night as both an attack and a successful defence operation. The Dnipropetrovsk Oblast strikes, including the fatality toll and the day of mourning in Kamianske, are given prominence as part of the same overnight wave. A NABU/SAP exposé of a criminal organisation inside the Office of the Prosecutor General is included alongside frontline and strike news in the morning digest.
Where reporting differs
Sources differ on whether the attacks on Kyiv and Boryspil airports were a deliberate Kremlin response to discussions of a US visit to Ukraine — Zelensky's reported framing — or simply part of Russia's ongoing air campaign. One source, via monitoring channels, also reported an alleged order for Ukrainian forces to observe a ceasefire regime tied to visits by US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff.
Background
The strikes on Kyiv and Boryspil airports came amid reported discussions of a US diplomatic visit to Ukraine, which Zelensky suggested may have provoked the attack. In Kamianske, 5 September was declared a day of mourning after fatalities from the same night's attacks. Throughout the full-scale invasion, Russian forces have repeatedly combined ballistic missiles such as Iskander-M/KN-23 with large numbers of Shahed-type attack drones in overnight strikes on Ukrainian cities.