During the night of November 17 to 18, Russia launched a large-scale missile attack on the city of Sumy.
Regional officials confirmed that a Russian ballistic missile struck a residential building at approximately 9:30 p.m. local time, claiming the lives of 11 people, including a 9-year-old boy and a 14-year-old girl.
At least 68 others were injured, including 10 children among the wounded.
A second missile targeted energy infrastructure just hours later, at 12:30 a.m. on November 18, plunging parts of the city into darkness. According to The Kyiv Independent, authorities have not yet confirmed the extent of the damage or reported any casualties from the second strike.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the attack, calling for accountability on Telegram: “A rocket attack on a nine-story building in Sumy. We know about the dead and wounded, including children. My condolences to the families and friends. The criminal must be punished for killing innocent people.”
The explosion caused extensive damage to the targeted building, shattering windows in neighboring homes and leaving the area scarred. Artem Kobzar, Sumy’s acting mayor, reported that the missile also struck the yard of the building, compounding the destruction.
Emergency services are still on the scene, assisting victims as local media continue to document the aftermath.
Sumy Oblast has seen escalating destruction from Russian strikes in recent months, with fears mounting of a renewed offensive in the region. Shelling has become a daily reality for communities along Ukraine’s northeastern border, with some settlements enduring multiple attacks each day.
The strikes on Sumy come just one day after a large-scale Russian assault on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, which left at least seven civilians dead and 19 others injured across several regions.
