In the early hours of the morning of Friday, December 29, a massive wave of Russian bombing raids hit Ukraine's main cities, killing at least 12 people and wounding 70, according to a toll on Friday morning. Authorities to declare a general alert for several hours after the attacks. According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russian forces fired around 110 missiles and drones, making this one of the largest air attacks of the year. "We have not had so many red enemy targets on our monitors for a long time," said Ukrainian air force spokesman Yurii Ihnat, who intercepted several projectiles in flight. "It's Judgment Day," Ukrainians commented on social media, suspecting that Moscow had stockpiled missiles for the operation.

Explosions were heard in all four of the capital's central districts. Three people were trapped under the rubble early this morning, according to Kyiv's mayor, Vitali Klitschko. A shopping center was hit, as was Dnipro in the south, where the maternity ward of a hospital and several buildings caught fire. In Odesa, on the Black Sea coast, three large buildings were targeted; while Kharkiv, in the country's east, was hit by at least 22 missiles between 5 and 8 am, according to the city's mayor, Ihor Terekhov. A hospital in Kharkiv's Kyivskyi district was damaged.

The strikes were carried out with S-300 and X-22 missiles and disrupted power supplies to transport networks, according to the Ukrainian army. The towns of Zaporizhzhia, in the southeast, and Konotop, near the Russian border, were also reported as being under Russian fire. The western city of Lviv – which is generally less targeted – was not spared. Andriy Sadovyi, the city's mayor, referred to a "fire at a critical infrastructure facility" – without giving further details – adding that a day nursery and three schools were hit by Shahed drones, weapons manufactured in Iran. Several missiles were also aimed at the Starokostiantyniv airfield, east of Lviv, which has been considered to be one of the main bases of the Ukrainian air force. A social media rumor has suggested that this is a sign that F-16 fighter aircraft, promised by European countries and the United States, have been delivered.

"We are doing everything to strengthen our air shield. But the world needs to see that we need more support and strength to stop this terror," Andriy Yermak, the head of the Ukrainian president's office, stated on Telegram. The Russian shelling came after Moscow confirmed that one of its large warships, the Novocherkassk, was damaged in the annexed region of Crimea on December 26. The Ukrainian army, meanwhile, claimed to have "destroyed" the vessel with cruise missiles, because it was allegedly carrying Shahed drones. According to some observers, the December 29 strikes were a response to this attack. Finally, at around 10 am, Kyiv lifted the general alert.