At least four people have been killed in in Ukraine after a wave of Russian missile and drone strikes, regional officials have said, with a hypersonic missile used to target Kyiv.

Two ⁠people were killed ‌in the capital ‌overnight, according to mayor Vitali Klitschko, while Kyiv’s regional governor added two ⁠others were ​killed in surrounding districts.

Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelenskyy said Russia said on Sunday a Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM), capable of carrying nuclear or conventional warheads, was used in the attack.

The Russian Defence Ministry later acknowledged it used the hypersonic missile in the strikes, along with its Iskander,
Kinzhal and ​Zircon missiles.

Read more: What we know about the Oreshnik

Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that at least 83 ⁠people were injured ​by the ​Russian attack. Pic: AP
Image:
Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that at least 83 ⁠people were injured ​by the ​Russian attack. Pic: AP

Mr Zelenskyy added there were at least 83 ⁠people injured ​in the strikes, which ​involved 600 ⁠drones and ⁠90 missiles, mainly targeting Kyiv.

He also said that Russia had struck the city of Bila Tserkva in the Kyiv region with the Oreshnik.

Pics: AP
Image:
Pics: AP

The president said on Saturday that US and Western intelligence were suggesting Russia was planning to use the hypersonic missile in the strikes overnight.

Russia said the strikes were in response to Kyiv’s attacks on civilian targets in Russia. On Saturday, Russian officials said 18 people were killed in a Ukrainian drone strike on a student dorm in the Russian-controlled Luhansk region.

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From Janaury: Russian Oreshnik missile an ‘unpredictable beast’

Ukraine’s military denied responsibility for the attack, saying it had struck an elite drone command unit in the area.

Kyiv military administration head Tymur Tkachenko said on Telegram that damage was recorded across 40 locations across several districts of the city, including residential buildings.

Pics: AP
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Pics: AP

Putin: Oreshnik ‘like a meteorite’

What is the Oreshnik missile?

The Oreshnik is an intermediate ballistic missile capable of carrying nuclear or conventional warheads.

Its name means “hazelnut tree” in Russian.

President Vladimir Putin has said the Oreshnik streaks at 10 times the speed of sound, or Mach 10 and travels “like a meteorite”. He claims the missile is immune to any missile defence system.

The Russian president has also said the missile is capable of destroying underground bunkers “three, four or more floors down”.

The Oreshnik has been used three times against Ukraine since the war began with Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, including this latest attack on Kyiv.

Intermediate missiles have a range of 3,000-5,500 km (1,860-3,415 miles), which would enable them to strike anywhere in Europe or the US from Russia.

Ballistic missiles can travel into space and their speed makes it difficult to intercept them.

But Sky News military analyst Sean Bell noted: “It’s difficult to shoot them down when they’re in space, but they inevitably slow down a lot as soon as they hit the Earth’s atmosphere and that’s when they become more vulnerable.”

Russia last launched an Oreshnik against Lviv on 8 January as part of an intensive overnight attack on western, central and southeastern Ukraine, comprising 278 Russian missiles and drones.

Mr Klitschko added that a school building being used as shelter by residents was damaged, while local authorities reported supermarkets and warehouses across the city were also damaged.



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