Fresh Russian and Ukrainian Strikes Claim Dozens of Civilian Lives Amid Escalating Conflict
KYIV/MOSCOW — July 26, 2026 — A wave of deadly strikes between Russian and Ukrainian forces over the past week has resulted in dozens of civilian casualties on both sides of the border, with attacks targeting infrastructure, residential areas, and civilian gathering points in the deadliest escalation in months.
On Sunday, July 26, ballistic missiles and drones struck multiple Ukrainian cities, killing at least two people in Kharkiv and one in Zaporizhzhia, while a Ukrainian drone attack on the Russian-occupied city of Horlivka killed four civilians, according to Russian-installed officials .
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Major Strikes in Late July
A Russian ballistic missile attack on Kyiv on Sunday, July 26, damaged a multi-storey apartment block in a central district, wounding three people and triggering fires . The attack followed warnings from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that intelligence indicated Russia was preparing a major missile assault .
On Friday, July 24, a Russian missile strike targeted an event at a military training ground in the Bucha district of the Kyiv region, killing 10 people and injuring approximately 100 others . Ukraine’s Prosecutor General opened a criminal investigation into possible negligence in the organization and conduct of the event .
Ukrainian forces responded with drone attacks on Russian soil, striking the Sheskharis oil terminal on the Black Sea—one of Russia’s largest—and causing fires at the Tyumen Oil Refinery in western Siberia . Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the hits on the Tyumen plant, a logistics facility in Yekaterinburg, and a fuel warehouse in Rostov-on-Don .
Civilian Toll on Both Sides
Over the past week, Russian strikes have killed at least 69 civilians and wounded more than 360, including 12 minors, according to Russian Foreign Ministry Ambassador-at-Large Rodion Miroshnik . The largest number of casualties was recorded in the Belgorod, Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, and Moscow regions . The majority—97% of the injured—were hurt by Ukrainian drone strikes .
Ukrainian authorities reported that Russian attacks on the eastern cities of Pavlograd and Kramatorsk killed two people each, while bombardment of the southern Odesa and Zaporizhzhia regions killed four others .
In a separate incident, Russian-installed authorities in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region accused Ukrainian forces of deliberately attacking civilian holiday camps, killing 12 people—including four children—and wounding 19 others . The Kremlin-installed regional head Yevgeny Balitsky condemned the attack .
War Crimes Investigations and UN Warnings
Ukrainian authorities have opened criminal investigations into the latest attacks, citing possible negligence in the conduct of civilian events near military facilities . The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine has repeatedly documented the use of explosive weapons in densely populated civilian areas .
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“Our findings have repeatedly shown that the use of powerful explosive weapons in densely populated civilian areas has devastating and foreseeable consequences for civilians,” said Danielle Bell, head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine .
According to the UN, civilian casualties in Ukraine have increased each month in 2026 and are significantly higher than comparable periods in the previous three years . An average of 170 civilians have been killed or injured each day in July, with the rate outpacing the previous year . The UN Security Council has held emergency sessions to address the escalating violence .
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