Russia strikes Cabinet building in Kyiv, Ukraine hits Druzhba oil pipeline

As chances of a possible truce between Russia and Ukraine grow slimmer by the day, the conflict between the neighbours had a serious escalation on Sunday (September 7) when Russia attacked buildings in Kyiv housing Ukraine’s Cabinet, while Ukraine retaliated by striking the Druzhba oil pipeline in Russia’s Bryansk region.

At least three persons, including a toddler, were killed and 15 were injured as Russia struck with 805 drones and decoys government buildings in Kyiv’s Pecherskyi district overnight on Sunday, the largest such attack since the full-scale invasion.

Confirming the attack, Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said: “For the first time, a government building was damaged by an enemy attack. We will restore the buildings, but lost lives cannot be returned.”

Watch: Trump’s gamble: Can he broker peace in the Russia-Ukraine war?

She urged western allies to respond with stricter sanctions against Russian oil and gas.

Yuriy Ihnat, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s Air Force, confirmed to news agency AP that Sunday’s attack was the largest Russian drone strike. Russia also launched 13 missiles of various types.

Toddler among dead

Ukraine shot down and neutralised 747 drones and four missiles, according to a statement from the Air Force.

There were nine missile hits and 56 drone strikes in 37 locations across Ukraine. Debris from shot-down drones and missiles fell on eight locations.

Among the dead was a one-year-old child, whose body was dug out of the rubble by rescuers, said Tymur Tkachenko, the head of Kyiv's city administration. The other casualties included a young woman and an elderly woman sheltering in a basement. A pregnant woman was among the injured.

Russian drone debris struck a nine-storey residential building in Kyiv’s Sviatoshynskyi district and a four-storey residential building in Darnytskyi district, according to Mayor Vitallii Klitschko.

Key Kyiv building hit

Visuals showed smoke billowing out of the roof of Kyiv’s Cabinet of Ministers’ building in Ukraine following the Russian strikes. Russia had so far avoided targeting government buildings in the city centre.

Also read: Trump's Act 2 in Ukraine peace push leaves many key questions unanswered

Within hours, Ukraine retaliated by striking Russian energy facilities. According to drone commander Robert Brovdi, the Druzhba oil pipeline, a crucial supply route to Hungary and Slovakia, suffered “comprehensive fire damage”. These two countries continue to import Russian oil despite extensive EU sanctions. The strike was part of a broader Ukrainian campaign targeting Russian energy infrastructure.

Sunday’s attack was the second mass Russian drone and missile attack to target Kyiv in the span of two weeks, as hopes for peace talks wane.

(With agency inputs)