As of: 8 October, 12:00 (Kyiv). Russian attacks in recent days have killed 78 people and injured 215 in Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. He announced this on Thursday, 8 October, on Telegram. He was referring to the attacks on the cities of Pryluky and Kramatorsk, on Kyiv and other places. "This is a harsh Russian escalation – terror against people and life," Zelenskyy wrote. According to his own account, he had previously spoken by telephone with the President of the European Council, António Costa, and thanked him for his "clear and principled stance" in condemning the Russian attacks on the Ukrainian population.
The new figures update earlier reports: On the morning of 8 October, the governor of the Chernihiv region, Vyacheslav Chaus, had spoken of 22 dead, including five children, after the missile attack on Pryluky; 55 people were injured. The BBC reported, citing the Ukrainian authorities, that among the dead were three one-year-old children and an eight-year-old boy. In total, according to the situation at the time, 28 people had been killed in the wave of attacks in the night of 7 October in Kyiv, Pryluky, Kremenchuk and Oleksandriia. The figure of 78 dead and 215 injured now given by Zelenskyy refers to a longer period and several cities.
What is known so far about the attacks
In the night of 7 October, according to the Ukrainian air force, Russia carried out a “massive combined attack” – with ballistic and cruise missiles as well as attack drones. The air force spoke of “Zircons”, Iskander ballistic missiles and their analogues, 48 cruise missiles and 130 drones. According to Ukrainian reports, 5 ballistic missiles (only by Patriot systems), 39 cruise missiles and 117 drones were shot down. In Pryluky, a missile hit a five-storey residential building and largely destroyed it. Rescue workers recovered the bodies of five children; twelve people, including one child, were rescued. 15 apartment buildings and 16 private houses were damaged. In Kremenchuk, several residential buildings were hit, at least two people died, more than 40 were injured. In Kyiv, two men aged 73 and 66 were killed in the Darnytsia district; in the evening, a woman died in another attack in the Obolon district.
Already in the days before, Russia had pounded Ukraine with drones and missiles. On 4 October, the Ukrainian air force reported 135 attack drones, of which 123 had been shot down or suppressed. In Kyiv, the North Bridge was hit again, a district heating pipeline was damaged, and in the Desna district the hot water supply temporarily failed. In Dnipro, a building of a telecommunications company was hit. In the Sumy region, Russian glide bombs (KAB) killed a 52-year-old man, and three other people were injured. The Ukrainian government and international organisations classify such attacks on civilian infrastructure as war crimes; Moscow denies deliberately attacking civilian targets.
How the international community is reacting
The European Council has condemned the attacks. Zelenskyy thanked Costa for his “clear and principled stance”. Zelenskyy did not mention any concrete new commitments – such as additional air defence systems – in his Telegram post. Already in September, at a meeting with US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, he had asked for additional Patriot missiles to protect the power grid from an expected Russian winter offensive. No agreements were reached at that time. The Kremlin stated at the time that there was still no basis for peace talks.
The attacks also affect people in Germany indirectly: the EU and Germany continue to support Ukraine militarily and financially. For refugees from Ukraine in Germany, the latest attacks do not immediately change their residence status. However, the ongoing Russian attacks on energy infrastructure could trigger new refugee movements – an issue that also concerns German domestic politics.
What happens next
Rescue and recovery work in Pryluky was still ongoing on Thursday morning. The Ukrainian air force warned that the attacks could continue. Zelenskyy again called for more air defence from the partners. Whether there will be new commitments is open. The coming days will show whether Russia intensifies its attacks on energy infrastructure – with a view to winter.
Earlier coverage: 25 Killed in Russian Attack on Ukraine, Zelenskyy Warns Against Normalization
