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Russia intensified its attacks on Ukraine’s capital, firing drones and missiles overnight after a seven-hour barrage of Kyiv on Saturday that was one of the most sustained in the four-year war. The airstrikes, which spilled over into early Sunday, followed the second stage of a major prisoner of war swap. Another 307 prisoners on each side were exchanged near Ukraine’s northern border with Belarus, Russia’s Defense Ministry said. Hours before, Kyiv came under fire by the first round of the Russian barrage. Explosions were heard across Kyiv and debris from intercepted projectiles fell in several districts after Kremlin forces fired drones and missiles, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram. Social media posts showed clouds of smoke above the city and damaged high-rise apartment buildings. The head of Kyiv’s military administration called the air attack the “most massive” the capital has faced so far in the war. At least 15 people were injured in Kyiv, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on X. “This is Russia’s response to international peace efforts and clear evidence that increased sanctions pressure on Moscow is necessary to accelerate the peace process,” Sybiha said. Then shortly after midnight on Sunday, with Ukrainian air defenses armed, explosions erupted again in the city. More than 10 Russian drones were in the air with more approaching the city, the authorities said on Telegram. Debris of a Russian drone fell in a four-store residential building in one of Kyiv districts, authorities said. In the first round, Russia fired 250 Shahed and other drones and 14 ballistic missiles into Ukraine, the Ukrainian Air Force said on Telegram. Most of the drones were shot down or jammed and six of the missiles were intercepted. Other locations targeted included Odesa on the Black Sea coast, Ukraine’s third largest city, as well as the Vinnytsia, Sumy, Kharkiv, Donetsk and Dnipro regions, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on social media. Russia’s Defense Ministry said in a readout that its forces targeted a Ukrainian enterprise that produces missile weapons and drones, a military reconnaissance center and the position of a US-made Patriot anti-aircraft missile system. Russia also claimed to have seized control of Loknya, a village in Ukraine’s Sumy region near the nations’ border. The prisoner swap, agreed between Kyiv and Moscow at a meeting in Istanbul last week, went ahead despite the airstrikes. Friday’s handover involved 390 people swapped from each side, and the total should reach 1,000 prisoners from each country. The Russian service members are receiving initial assistance in Belarus and will be returned to Russia for treatment and rehabilitation. Among those returned to Ukraine are soldiers from the army, the State Border Service, and the National Guard, Zelenskiy said. Last week’s Istanbul meeting marked the first direct talks between the warring parties in more than three years, and the prisoner swap is the main tangible result of the talks. Zelenskiy offered to travel to Turkey for the talks, and challenged Russian President Vladimir Putin to meet him there to discuss a ceasefire. Putin, who never indicated he’d personally take part personally in the discussions, sent a low-level delegation headed by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky. “One week has passed since the Istanbul meeting, and Russia has yet to send its ‘peace memorandum.’ Instead, Russia sends deadly drones and missiles at civilians,” Sybiha said. Separately on Saturday, Russia said it repelled 94 Ukrainian drones overnight across several regions of central Russia. The city of Yelets in Russia’s Lipetsk region was targeted for the second day, including in an industrial area, the local governor said. Ukraine on Friday said its hit production facilities of a company in Yelets that makes batteries used to power Russian missiles. With assistance from Michael Heath. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
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