Russia launched a wave of drone attacks across Ukraine overnight on Sunday, killing at least seven people and injuring dozens just a day before scheduled ceasefire talks mediated by the United States in Saudi Arabia. Ukrainian emergency services confirmed the death toll, with three of the victims, including a five-year-old child, killed in Kyiv. More than 10 others were injured in the capital as debris from intercepted drones struck residential buildings. Ukrainian air defenses shot down 97 of the 147 drones launched, while 25 others failed to reach their targets due to countermeasures, according to the Ukrainian Air Force. The attack targeted multiple regions including Kharkiv, Sumy, Chernihiv, Odesa, Donetsk, and Kyiv. The most severe damage occurred in the Donetsk region, where regional Governor Vadym Filashkin confirmed four additional deaths, three of which occurred in the frontline town of Dobropillya. Photos from the capital showed firefighters dousing flames and residents clearing debris from charred apartments. "There is no point in signing anything with Russians," said Kyiv resident Dmytro Zapadnya, expressing deep skepticism toward the ceasefire initiative. "It won't be worth the paper it's signed on." The strikes came just hours before a planned meeting between Ukrainian and U.S. officials in Saudi Arabia. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that technical teams were being dispatched to finalize the details of a proposed ceasefire aimed at halting long-range attacks on energy infrastructure and civilian areas. "Just this week, more than 1,580 guided aerial bombs, almost 1,100 strike drones, and 15 missiles were used against our people," Zelenskyy wrote on social media. "New solutions and more pressure on Moscow are urgently needed." Meanwhile, Russia's Ministry of Defense reported it had downed 59 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 29 over Rostov and 20 more over the Astrakhan region. A Ukrainian drone strike in Rostov reportedly killed one person, and another woman was killed in Belgorod when her car was hit by a drone. — Agencies
