Russian attack hits Ukraine's security service headquarters

Russian attack hits Ukraine's security service headquarters

Moscow making more daytime strikes with fast, jet-powered drones

A Russian drone attack on Friday targeted the headquarters of Ukraine's SBU security service in central Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

"Unfortunately, a Russian drone struck the central building of the Security Service of Ukraine on Volodymyrska Street in Kyiv, across from St. Sophia Cathedral," he said on X after speaking with acting head of the service Oleksandr Poklad.

"The drone was aimed directly at the office of the head of the Security Service in that building."

Five people were injured in the attack, Kyiv's mayor added on the Telegram app. Heavy black smoke rose from the site.

The news comes as Russia changes its tactics in the war.

Russia has typically attacked Ukraine at night. But now, daytime strikes are becoming more frequent with Russia's use of fast-flying, jet-powered drones. Since last week, attacks have come day and night, compounding the terror of overnight strikes with the exhaustion of constant daytime disruption.

In Kyiv, the recurring wail of air-raid sirens has become part of daily life, and the relentless alerts are exhausting residents, some of whom are left wondering how long they can stay.

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Getting the shopping done has become a nightmare for Volodymyr Bovsunovskyi, who recounts a recent family trip to a mall to buy clothes for his nearly four-year-old daughter. They had been inside for about 20 minutes when the alert sounded. They rushed out without buying clothes and saw smoke rising nearby.

"A lot has changed in the last seven days," he said. Like many residents, he hopes the attacks will relent. For now, Ukraine is struggling to find an effective way to counter them.

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Bovsunovskyi is now considering leaving the city for a while, hoping to give his family — including his pregnant wife — a chance to rest.

Ivan Datsiv, an IT worker, was in his apartment in Kyiv's Podil district when a Russian drone tore through the floor on Tuesday, charring the ceilings and walls of his apartment and completely destroying the one next door.

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Datsiv tries to joke about it, saying he had been meaning to repaint the walls anyway.

The alerts have become so frequent that he no longer sees the point of repeatedly going to a shelter. At this rate, he said, the only alternative would be to live in the basement.

"The alarms sound constantly," he said. "You don't even have time to go down and come back up. It's just a waste of time running back and forth."

He, too, is thinking of leaving Kyiv for "another city — somewhere quiet and without this danger."

With files from The Associated Press