Ukraine updates: Russian strikes hit Kyiv, western region
Deutsche Welle May 26, 2025 03:39 AM

Russian drones and missiles have again hit regions of Ukraine, killing several in the capital and elsewhere. The attacks come amid a major prisoner exchange between the two countries. DW has more. Russian aerial attacks overnight have killed several people across Ukraine, including in the Kyiv region Russian authorities say a dozen drones flying toward Moscow have also been downed A major prisoner exchange is expected to bring more POWs from both sides home on Sunday Here is a roundup of developments from Russia's war on Ukraine on Sunday, May 25. Prisoner exchange expected to continue A prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia that is expected to be the biggest in more than three years of war is set to continue on Sunday, officials said. In negotiations held in Istanbul earlier this month, Kyiv and Moscow agreed to swap 1,000 prisoners of war and civilian detainees each. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russia's Defense Ministry said 307 soldiers were swapped on Saturday, after 390 soldiers and civilians were released on Friday. "We expect more to come tomorrow," Zelenskyy said on his official Telegram channel on Saturday, a comment echoed by Russia's Defense Ministry. No details have been so far given on the number of detainees likely to be exchanged on Sunday. Thousands of POWs are being held in both countries after more than three years of conflict, though Russia is thought to have captured the most, with the number estimated to be as many as 10,000. Several dead in Ukraine as Moscow and Kyiv trade aerial attacks Russian strikes have killed at least nine people across Ukraine overnight, Ukrainian officials said on Sunday. In a post on the messaging app Telegram, emergency services wrote that four people had been killed and 16 injured in the Kyiv region, including three children, in what was described as a "massive night attack" with missiles and drones. Four people were also reported to have been killed and five wounded in the Khmelnytskyi region of western Ukraine. "Last night, the Khmelnytskyi region came under hostile Russian fire, which resulted in the destruction of civilian infrastructure ... Unfortunately, four people were killed," Serhiy Tyurin, the deputy head of the regional military administration, said in a Telegram post. Officials said another person died in an attack in the southern city of Mykolaiv. This comes as Russian authorities reported that a dozen Ukrainian drones had been intercepted as they flew toward Moscow. Restrictions were imposed on at least four airports in the Russian capital, including the main airport of Sheremetyevo, the Russian civilian aviation authority said. So far, there have been no reports of casualties on the Russian side. Welcome to our coverage Russia is continuing with its massive aerial attacks on Ukraine even as the two countries carry out the biggest prisoner exchange since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. More soldiers and civilians held captive by both sides are expected to be swapped on Sunday in a third phase of a "1,000 for 1,000" deal reached during negotiations in Istanbul, Turkey, earlier this month. Both countries are holding thousands of prisoners of war after more than three years of conflict. Read our coverage for news and analysis by our reporters and correspondents as Russia pushes on with its full-scale invasion of its neighbor.


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