Congress of the Council of Europe

Kyiv, the capital city of Ukraine, faced a sudden air strike alert this morning, prompting the Bulgarian delegation led by Speaker of the National Assembly Rosen Zhelyazkov to seek refuge in a bomb shelter.

"We inform you that there is an intensive activity of the long-range aviation of the Russian Federation. We warn that Poland and allied aviation have been activated, which may lead to an increase in the noise level, especially in the southeastern part of the country," the command stated on X network.

A  missile strike killed 32 people in Kiev on Dec. 29, authorities said Thursday, raising the toll of the deadliest attack on the Ukrainian capital since the war began.

Russia has in recent days intensified aerial attacks against Ukraine, which says it has enough munition to withstand a few powerful assaults but would soon need more aid.

Two strong explosions were heard in central Kiev on Saturday morning by AFP journalists, who also saw trails in the sky, shortly before air raid sirens sounded.

"Strong explosions were heard on the left bank of the capital. According to preliminary information, the air defences worked against ballistic weapons," Kiev mayor Vitali Klitschko wrote on Telegram.

One civilian has died in Kiev after a "massive" drone attack on the Ukrainian capital, the city's mayor Vitali Klitschko said Sunday.

"A 35-year-old woman was hospitalised, a 41-year-old man died," the mayor and former boxer said on Telegram, reporting that drone wreckage had crashed near a petrol station.

As they state, the Russians attacked using drones, cruise missiles, and apparently ballistic missiles, in which three people were injured.
They said tonight's attack was the eighth this month. A Reuters reporter reported, referring to the testimonies of eyewitnesses, that during the night a series of very loud detonations shook the capital of Ukraine.

Here are the highlights of events related to the war in Ukraine over the past 24 hours:

Explosions in the center of Kyiv. Fighter jets fly over the city

World media reported explosions in the center of Kyiv, a day after the Russian president accused Ukraine of a terrorist attack on the Crimean bridge.

Russian forces renewed missile strikes on Kiev and intensified shelling of Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, in an apparent strategy to hobble Ukraine's defenses in preparation for what is expected to be a full-scale Russian assault in the east.

A court on Dec. 21 sentenced Leyla Güven, a former deputy from the opposition Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) to over 22 years in prison for being a member of an armed terrorist group and making propaganda for it twice.

The 9th Heavy Penal Court in southeastern Diyarbakir province handed Güven 22 years and three months in prison and issued an arrest warrant for her.

Mayor of the Ukrainian capital Vitali Klitschko announced that schools and universities in the city will be closed from tomorrow until the end of March to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, Reuters reported.