Russian drone strikes 'My — Ukraine' TV channel office in Kyiv during live broadcast

Why it matters

A Russian drone struck a working newsroom during a live national broadcast, putting the question of deliberate targeting of journalists squarely on the table. Zelensky publicly framed it as a symbolic escalation — 'a new page of Russian degradation' — and appealed to Europe and the world for a response, while EU figures used the moment to announce concrete support measures. The fact that this is the second hit on the same office in less than three weeks suggests a pattern rather than a coincidence, and the strike followed an overnight combined missile-and-drone barrage and visits by US envoys to Moscow and Kyiv.

What happened

On 8 September, during the daytime, a Russian strike drone — described by officials as a 'Shahed' — hit the building in Kyiv's Solomianskyi district that houses the 'My — Ukraine' and 'My — Ukraine+' TV channels. The main impact fell on the channel's newsroom and staff offices; part of the building was destroyed and a fire broke out, which SES rescuers extinguished. At the moment of the strike, 'My — Ukraine' was broadcasting live on the national 'United News' telethon, with journalists on air. Two people were evacuated from the upper floors of the building.

President Zelensky said five people were known to be injured and that the number could rise. 'My — Ukraine' general producer Yurii Suhak told Detector Media that six employees of the two channels were injured, with light to moderate wounds, and that five of them were hospitalized. The channel suspended broadcasting and said it planned to resume within one to two days, with colleagues from other channels temporarily filling its slot in the telethon. Zelensky called the strike 'a new page of Russian degradation' and appealed for a reaction from Europe and the world.

How Ukrainian sources describe it

Ukrainian outlets frame the strike as a deliberate attack on a working newsroom during a live broadcast, with the channel releasing footage to argue the hit was targeted, not collateral. Coverage centres on the threat to journalists: the channel's general producer and the head of its media group gave casualty and operational details, while the Foreign Ministry's spokesman, Heorhii Tykhyi, appealed to the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media and cited aggregate figures — around 30 cases of damaged, seized or destroyed editorial offices since the full-scale invasion began, 21 media workers killed while performing professional duties, and 10 media workers killed as civilian victims. Ukrainian sources also embed the strike in the broader overnight combined missile-and-drone attack on Kyiv, listing affected districts, missile and drone types, and interception figures. Several outlets connect the timing to weekend visits by US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner and to a three-day strike 'pause' on Kyiv that was attributed to Putin.

How international sources describe it

The international framing in the supplied sources comes primarily from EU actors. EU Ambassador to Ukraine Katherina Maternova condemned the strike as outrageous, said editorial offices are not a battlefield, and used the moment to welcome the European Commission's approval of Ukraine's purchase of Patriot interceptor missiles worth about €3.2 billion, financed within an approximately €90 billion EU credit framework. An EU foreign affairs spokesperson cited as 'Vigand' framed the strike as coming a day after US envoys left Kyiv and said the EU is accelerating support for Ukraine. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte publicly welcomed the Patriot interceptor decision, tying the air-defence response to the attack.

Where reporting differs

Sources disagree on the number of people injured at the 'My — Ukraine' building: Zelensky initially reported five, while channel general producer Yurii Suhak said six employees of 'My — Ukraine' and 'My — Ukraine+' were injured, and the channel's press service reported that five of them were hospitalized. Broader citywide casualty figures from the 8 September attacks on Kyiv also vary between sources — one account cites 16 injured and 2 killed, another 10 injured, and a later update cites 19 injured and 3 killed, per Mayor Klitschko and the Kyiv City Military Administration. Lists of affected Kyiv districts from the overnight attack differ slightly between reports, with one including Shevchenkivskyi and others Dniprovs'kyi instead. The State Emergency Service characterised the hit building as a business centre in the Solomianskyi district housing the channels, while most other reports describe it as the 'My — Ukraine' TV channel office.

Background

'My — Ukraine' is one of the channels that participates in the national 'United News' (Yedyni Novyny) telethon, a joint wartime information broadcast. On the night of 20 August, the same office was already damaged during a massive Russian attack on Kyiv, with windows blown out and the newsroom and corridors significantly damaged. In the overnight attack on Kyiv on 7–8 September, Russia used Oniks anti-ship missiles, Iskander-M ballistic missiles, S-400, KN-23, Kh-101 cruise missiles and 166 drones of various types; hits were recorded at 29 locations with debris at 9 more, and Ukrainian air defence reportedly shot down 33 missiles and 142 drones. According to Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhyi, around 30 cases of damage, seizure or destruction of editorial offices and journalists' property have been recorded since the start of the full-scale invasion, with 21 media workers killed while performing professional duties. Around the time of the strike, EU member states approved Ukraine's purchase of Patriot interceptor missiles worth about €3.2 billion within an approximately €90 billion EU credit framework, and the European Commission and NATO leadership publicly welcomed the decision.