At least 25 people have been killed and dozens more injured following overnight Russian drone and missile strikes across Ukraine, the country’s Ministry of Internal Affairs reported on November 19, 2025.

The attacks coincided with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to Turkiye, where he aims to revive talks on ending the two-year-long war following Russia’s full-scale invasion.

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Impact Across Multiple Regions

Russia launched over 470 drones and 48 missiles, hitting both western and northeastern Ukraine.

• Ternopil: At least 25 fatalities, including three children, were reported. 73 people were injured. A multistorey residential building was heavily damaged, with upper floors destroyed and fires visible.
• Lviv: Power disruptions were reported, while an energy facility and industrial site were damaged. No casualties were immediately reported.
• Kharkiv region: At least 36 people were injured, with more than 10 apartment buildings, a school, a supermarket, and an ambulance substation damaged.

Ukraine’s energy ministry confirmed that emergency power outages affected several regions due to the strikes.

President Zelenskyy condemned the attacks, calling them “brazen assaults on ordinary life” and urging international allies to provide more air defence missile systems to counter Russia’s bombardments.

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Ukraine’s Counterstrikes on Russian Territory

In a related development, Ukraine fired four US-made ATACMS missiles targeting civilian areas in Voronezh, Russia, according to Moscow.

• Russia’s defence ministry claimed all missiles were intercepted by S-400 and Pantsir systems, though falling debris caused minor damage to a retirement home, an orphanage, and one house.
• Kyiv stated the missiles were aimed at military targets in Russia, highlighting the expanding use of the ATACMS systems, which Ukraine received in 2023.

This follows earlier strikes in January 2025, when Ukraine targeted Russia’s Belgorod region with the same missile systems.

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Calls for Stronger Air Defences

Ukrainian lawmakers and military officials stress the need for additional air defence systems, citing the frequency and scale of Russian drone and missile attacks.

“Ukraine is a huge country, and it is unfortunately impossible to completely stop all missiles or drones. We are intercepting part of them, but we definitely need more weapons, more systems, more air defence,” said Oleksiy Goncharenko, Ukrainian lawmaker.

Neighboring Poland also temporarily closed two airports in response to the attacks, underscoring the regional impact of the conflict.

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Looking Ahead

As Ukraine continues to bolster its air defences with international support, the latest attacks mark a sharp escalation in civilian-targeted strikes and highlight the urgent need for international aid in missile defence systems, humanitarian relief, and reconstruction efforts.

The conflict remains unpredictable, with ongoing strikes affecting both civilian infrastructure and essential services across Ukraine, while Kyiv seeks diplomatic and military support from European allies.