ISTANBUL

A massive Russian overnight attack on Ukraine damaged the Embassy of Qatar in Kyiv besides damaging other infrastructure, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Friday.

"In addition to our civilian infrastructure and energy facilities, a building of the Embassy of Qatar was damaged last night by a Russian drone," Zelenskyy said on Telegram.

He emphasized the diplomatic significance of the target, describing Qatar as "a state that does so much to mediate with Russia in order to secure the release of prisoners of war and civilians held in Russian prisons."

There was no immediate comment from Doha.

Zelenskyy said Russian forces launched 242 drones, 13 ballistic missiles, 22 cruise missiles, and also fired the Oreshnik medium-range hypersonic ballistic missile, killing four people in the capital.

A "second strike," he added, hit a residential building while first responders were assisting victims, injuring dozens and killing an ambulance crew member.

"A clear reaction from the world is needed, above all from the United States," he said, urging partners to prioritize air defense support.

He earlier warned Russia was "betting more on winter" and ballistic missiles than on diplomacy or agreements with US President Donald Trump.

Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the strike with Oreshnik ballistic missile close to EU and NATO border “is a grave threat to the security on the European continent and a test for the transatlantic community.”

He said Ukraine will initiate an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council, a meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Council, as well as responses within the EU, Council of Europe, and OSCE.

Among the wounded were medical personnel, rescue workers and a police officer, prosecutors said. The attack affected multiple districts of the capital, including Darnytsia, Dnipro, Desnianskyi, Pechersk, Shevchenkivskyi, Holosiivskyi and Sviatoshynskyi.

Authorities said 19 high-rise buildings were damaged, along with a kindergarten, a tram depot, an unfinished residential tower, several vehicles, a supermarket and a gas station. Emergency services and law enforcement agencies continued work at the affected sites.

Under the procedural leadership of the Kyiv City Prosecutor’s Office, a pre-trial investigation was launched into alleged war crimes under Article 438 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code, citing civilian deaths and damage to civilian infrastructure.

Russia's Defense Ministry confirmed its forces carried out a “massive strike” using long-range precision weapons, including the mobile ground-based Oreshnik ballistic missile system, as well as attack drones.

The ministry said the strikes targeted drone production facilities and energy infrastructure supporting Ukraine’s military industry.

It added that the operation was launched in response to what it described as a prior attack on the Russian president’s residence in the Novgorod region.