Russian drone strikes Kyiv TV channel building during live national telethon

Why it matters

A Russian drone deliberately struck an active TV newsroom during a live national broadcast, an unusual and symbolic targeting of media infrastructure that went beyond routine strikes on the capital. President Zelensky publicly framed the strike as 'a new page of Russian degradation' and used it to appeal for an international reaction. The same channel's offices had already been damaged in the 20 August mass Russian attack on Kyiv, making this a repeat strike on a known media target and reinforcing a pattern of attacks on Ukrainian journalism.

What happened

On 8 September, during the daytime, a Russian strike drone — referred to by officials as a 'Shahed' — hit the building of the 'My — Ukraina' and 'My — Ukraina+' TV channels in Kyiv. The main impact fell on the channel's newsroom and staff offices, partially destroying the building. At the moment of the strike, 'My — Ukraina' was broadcasting the national telethon 'United News' live, with journalists on air.

President Volodymyr Zelensky reported the strike on Telegram, saying a strike drone had hit the channel building in broad daylight while journalists were on air, and that the building was partially destroyed. He initially said five people were known to be injured at the channel, with the number potentially rising, and described the attack as 'a new page of Russian degradation,' calling for a reaction from Europe and the world.

The State Emergency Service identified the struck building as a business centre in Kyiv's Solomianskyi district. SES rescuers extinguished the fire and evacuated two people from the upper floors. The channel's general producer, Yurii Suhak, told Detector Media that six 'My — Ukraina' and 'My — Ukraina+' employees were injured, with light and non-life-threatening injuries, and that five of them were hospitalized. Ihor Petrenko, head of the 'My — Ukraina' media group, said the team was being moved to remote work and that changes to the broadcast schedule were possible.

The daytime strike followed a massive overnight Russian attack on Kyiv that began on the evening of 7 September. Overnight, Russia struck Ukraine with Oniks anti-ship missiles, Iskander-M ballistic missiles, S-400, KN-23 and Kh-101 cruise missiles, together with 166 drones of various types; hits were recorded at 29 locations, with debris from downed targets falling at 9 more. Ukrainian air defence reportedly shot down 33 missiles and 142 drones. The overnight attack caused damage in multiple Kyiv districts, including 14 multi-story residential buildings, warehouses, an educational institution, a medical facility, and the entrance to the 'Taras Shevchenko' metro station. This was also not the first time the 'My — Ukraina' offices had been damaged by a Russian attack: on the night of 20 August, the channel's building was hit during a massive Russian attack on Kyiv, with windows blown out, significant damage to the newsroom, and part of the corridor ceiling torn off by the blast wave.

How Ukrainian sources describe it

All supplied sources are Ukrainian and uniformly describe the strike as a deliberate Russian attack on Ukrainian media infrastructure, emphasizing that the building was hit during a live national telethon broadcast. Coverage repeatedly foregrounds President Zelensky's framing of the strike as 'a new page of Russian degradation' and his appeal for an international reaction, treating the strike as a symbolic act against journalism. Outlets also note this was the second time the 'My — Ukraina' offices had been damaged by a Russian attack, explicitly referencing the 20 August strike to build a narrative of repeated targeting. Sources give an insider, operational perspective from the targeted outlet, detailing the general producer's injury count, the media-group head's move to remote work, and hospitalization figures.

Where reporting differs

Sources disagree on the number of people injured at the 'My — Ukraina' / 'My — Ukraina+' building: President Zelensky initially reported five injured, while the channel's general producer Yurii Suhak said six channel employees were injured (with five of them hospitalized, per the channel's press service).

Citywide casualty figures from the 8 September Russian strikes on Kyiv also diverge across sources: one outlet cited 16 injured and 2 killed, another cited 10 injured, and a later update from Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko and the Kyiv City Military Administration cited 19 injured and 3 killed.

There is also disagreement on which Kyiv districts were hit by falling debris and fires in the overnight attack: one article lists Solomianskyi, Podilskyi, Darnytskyi, Holosiivskyi and Shevchenkivskyi, while another lists Solomianskyi, Darnytskyi, Holosiivskyi, Dniprovs'kyi and Podilskyi.

Background

The daytime strike on 8 September came after a massive overnight Russian attack on Kyiv using Oniks, Iskander-M, S-400, KN-23 and Kh-101 missiles together with 166 drones; hits were recorded at 29 locations and debris at 9 more, with Ukrainian air defence reportedly shooting down 33 missiles and 142 drones. The overnight attack caused damage across multiple Kyiv districts, including 14 multi-story residential buildings, warehouses, an educational institution, a medical facility and the entrance to the 'Taras Shevchenko' metro station. Citywide casualty figures from the day's attacks on Kyiv were reported variously as 16 injured and 2 killed, 10 injured, and 19 injured with 3 killed, depending on the source and the timing of the update. The 'My — Ukraina' offices had also been damaged in a previous massive Russian attack on Kyiv overnight on 20 August, when windows were blown out, the newsroom was significantly damaged and part of the corridor ceiling was torn off by the blast wave. After the 8 September strike, the head of the 'My — Ukraina' media group said the team was being moved to remote work and that changes to the broadcast schedule were possible.