Maryna, 20, holds her cat Sirius in her damaged flat at the site of a drone strike near a residential building in Kharkiv, Ukraine, 2 May 2025. Photo: EPA-EFE/SERGEY KOZLOV

Russian drones struck the city of Kharkiv in eastern Ukraine overnight, injuring at least 51, the regional Prosecutor’s Office said on Saturday.

The drones hit residential areas, with private houses, apartment buildings and a kindergarten all damaged.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that “dozens of Shahed drones” were launched at the city, despite the fact it housed no military targets. “Russia strikes residential buildings when Ukrainians are at home, putting their children to bed,” he said.

The Ukrainian Air Force said that the country had been hit by two Iskander-M ballistic missiles and 183 drones overnight, saying 77 Shahed drones had been shot down over the east, north, south and centre of the country, while 73 others had failed to reach their target. The Kharkiv, Sumy, Donetsk and Mykolayiv regions had all come under attack.

Meanwhile, the Russian Defence Ministry said that 170 Ukrainian drones had been shot down overnight. Most — 96 — were destroyed over occupied Crimea, while the remainder targeted southern Russia and regions bordering Ukraine.

Telegram channel ASTRA said that drones hit residential buildings in the port city of Novorossiysk, in the southern Krasnodar region. Governor Veniamin Kondratyev said four people were injured. The city is now home to Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.

The Defence Ministry said eight Storm Shadow and three Ukrainian Neptune cruise missiles were shot down over the Black Sea, while 14 Ukrainian unmanned naval vessels were also destroyed.