Ukrainian rescuers are still pulling bodies from a collapsed apartment block in Pryluky. A Russian missile strike on the five-story residential building in the city of Chernihiv Oblast that borders both Russia and Belarus killed 19 people, including five children, and injured 55, Ukraine's State Emergency Service reported on 7 October.

Russia hit Kyiv and a dozen other regions overnight. Air defense downed five ballistic missiles, 39 cruise missiles, and 117 drones, while missiles and drones hit 18 locations, the Air Force said. The nationwide strike killed at least 24 people, including four children.

Among the dead in Pryluky were three one-year-old boys, Oleksandr, Kyrylo, and Serhii, and eight-year-old Maksym, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says. Seven of the injured are children. Some residents are still unreachable, and all emergency services are working at the site. Russia keeps using missiles against Ukrainian cities and civilians by deliberate choice, he states.

"My condolences to all the families and loved ones," Zelenskyy says.

The strike comes on Putin's birthday

The attack came on Russian President Vladimir Putin's birthday on 7 October.

"Continuing to use missiles against Ukraine, against our people, our children, is an absolutely conscious choice of terror. This is what Moscow chooses despite all our efforts with partners to bring peace closer," Zelenskyy says.

He urges partners to increase pressure on Russia and bolster defense support for Ukraine, saying it is important that world leaders understand this and that the world not remain silent.

A pattern of strikes on Chernihiv Oblast

Pryluky, about 150 kilometers east of Kyiv, lies in a region Russia has hit repeatedly. The overnight barrage also damaged civilian and utility infrastructure across the Pryluky community, the city council said.

Ukraine had seen the attack. The day before, Zelenskyy warned that intelligence indicated a massive Russian strike was in preparation. Russia fired about 70 missiles overnight, killing two people each in the capital Kyiv and in the cities of Kremenchuk and Oleksandriia in addition to the Pryluky dead.

Russia struck a fourth Ukrainian pharmaceutical warehouse in two weeks on 14 September, setting fire to the Odesa depot of medicine distributor BaDM, Ekonomichna Pravda reported. Russian forces hit it during an attack they ran across the country through the night. 

The fourth depot, and what Russia did to it

The BaDM complex stands on the edge of Odesa. The strike started a fire on the grounds, and the State Emergency Service worked at the site. It left significant damage to the storage buildings.

Preliminarily, nobody was hurt, sources on the pharmaceutical market told Ekonomichna Pravda. BaDM is one of the biggest wholesalers moving medicines to Ukrainian pharmacies.

The three depots Russia hit before it

• Russia opened the run on 3 September, when it damaged the Biokon logistics complex in Boryspil raion, Kyiv Oblast. That site counts as the country's largest specialized pharmaceutical warehouse.
• Overnight on 8 September, Russian forces attacked the Kyiv warehouse of Optima-Pharm with two ballistic missiles. They had already destroyed that site, which belongs to one of the largest distributors, in 2025.
• On 13 September, Russian forces struck Universal Logistic, the second-largest medicine warehouse in Ukraine. Four specialized sites in two weeks is a pattern, and Russia now hits medicine storage as it has hit food, construction materials, and parcels.

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The attack the Odesa strike came in

Russia launched 108 strike drones from 18:00 on 13 September, Ukraine's Air Force said. The wave carried Shahed-type drones, among them jet-powered ones, Gerbera drones, and Parodiya decoys. Air defense downed or suppressed 85 of them by 08:00. Ukrainian forces recorded hits at seven locations, and the Air Force said the attack was still running when it published that count.

Italy has pledged 1.5 million euros (approximately $1.6 million) to support humanitarian demining efforts in Ukraine, deepening its partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Ukrainian government.

The agreement was formalized during a high-level ceremony in Kyiv on June 23 attended by Italian Ambassador Carlo Formosa, UN Assistant Secretary-General and new UNDP Administrator Haoliang Xu, Jaco Cilliers, Resident Representative of the UNDP in Ukraine, and Ukraine’s First Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko.

"Demining is not just a technical operation; it is a deeply humanitarian act that combines cooperation and innovation to restore hope in Ukraine," Ambassador Formosa said. "This project is not only a response to the emergency — it’s a step toward recovery. It’s about returning land to farmers, playgrounds to children, and safe roads to families."

The funding will support UNDP’s mine action program, which focuses on clearing land contaminated by mines and explosive remnants of war, ensuring the safe return of land to Ukrainian communities.

The initiative comes as Ukraine continues to grapple with one of the world’s largest demining challenges. According to the State Emergency Service, the total area of potentially mined land has been reduced by over 20% since late 2022. However, approximately 137,000 square kilometers (52,900 square miles) — much of it farmland — remain contaminated. Demining operations are carried out by the emergency service personnel, National Police, Ministry of Defense, and non-governmental organizations.

Currently, 112 certified demining operators, including eight international groups, are active in Ukraine, the State Emergency Service reported on June 24. Their combined capacity includes more than 9,000 personnel, 278 specialized vehicles, and over 13,000 metal detectors.

While significant progress has been made, Ukrainian officials stress that continued international support and funding are critical to accelerating clearance efforts.

Investigation: How Russia prepares its strategic missile plant for ‘eternal war’

Key findings: * Despite international sanctions, Russia’s strategic missile plant was able to import complex machinery to dramatically increase missile production. * The Kyiv Independent has identified the equipment supplied to the plant, as well as the supply chains, mostly from China. * We located the plant’s new premises, built to house the

The Kyiv IndependentAlisa Yurchenko