Russian forces launched a series of missile strikes against Ukraine on Friday, killing at least 15 people, including 10 near Kyiv at a military exhibition. Earlier the same day, Ukrainian forces targeted multiple sites within Russia, including a missile factory, where six people died, and several warehouses belonging to Wildberries, the country’s largest online retailer. These attacks reflect an intensification of air raids on both sides amid a largely static front line in the ongoing conflict.
In Ukraine, a Russian ballistic missile struck a sports complex on the outskirts of Kyiv where a weapons exhibition was underway, Ukrainian officials reported. President Volodymyr Zelensky said rescue operations were in progress, with dozens injured. The exact circumstances and the full extent of casualties were still being assessed. Additionally, five civilians were reported killed by a Russian guided bomb in the eastern city of Sloviansk.
The attack on the Kyiv exhibition is reminiscent of a 2023 strike in Chernihiv that hit a theater hosting drone manufacturers, killing seven and injuring hundreds, prompting calls for enhanced security at defense-related events. Ukraine’s prosecutor general, Ruslan Kravchenko, announced a criminal investigation into the organizers of the exhibition near Kyiv, emphasizing the need for professionalism and caution during wartime activities.
Residents of Kyiv were warned by air raid sirens shortly before the missile impact, a signal that usually precedes incoming ballistic missiles by mere minutes. The civilian toll in Ukraine has recently remained high, with the United Nations reporting an average of about 170 casualties daily across the country in the first week of July.
On the Russian side, Ukraine launched drone and missile strikes targeting fuel facilities, a key military production plant, and commercial warehouses. Among the strikes was one in the Kirov region, east of Moscow, which Ukrainian officials and the manufacturer, Fire Point, said involved newly developed Flamingo missiles. Zelensky described the facility as critical for the supply of aircraft and missile system components. Russian authorities confirmed six deaths and 26 injuries from the attack.
The targeted plant, operated by Avitek and recognized by the Russian Engineering Union as a producer of aircraft components, is subject to sanctions by the United States, the European Union, Ukraine, and other nations.
Ukraine also continued its attacks on Wildberries warehouses. Friday’s strikes hit two facilities in St. Petersburg, one in Novosaratovka in the Leningrad region, and another in Simferopol, located in Russian-occupied Crimea. A warehouse linked to a poultry farm in the Leningrad region was also attacked. Wildberries CEO Tatyana Kim confirmed the warehouse strikes in St. Petersburg and Simferopol but noted that staff were able to salvage some of the inventory.
Russian officials reported three injuries from the Novosaratovka strike. Since the previous Saturday, attacks on Wildberries sites have reportedly resulted in eight deaths, with an additional fatality from a strike on Wednesday.
These exchanges mark the latest escalation in a conflict characterized by ongoing reciprocal missile and drone attacks causing casualties on both sides and targeting both military and civilian infrastructure.