Smoke billows from Moscow warehouse after deadly Ukrainian attacksYour support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Read more
Ukrainian forces have struck three oil depots and a fuel facility in Russia’s southern Stavropol region this morning, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
The Ukrainian president said three Russian “shadow fleet” tankers were also hit in the Black Sea.
It comes after a major Russian aerial assault on Kyiv and other cities this morning, which Ukrainian authorities said killed at least six people and injured 16 others.
The attack on Ukraine’s capital is believed to be the biggest ballistic missile attack of the war.
The Kyiv government said firefighters were responding to blazes in five different districts after the attack, one of the biggest in recent weeks, hit residential buildings, office and industrial sites, a dormitory and vehicles.
Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said the raid involved “around four dozen” ballistic missiles, the largest number in a single attack since the war began.
The attack on Kyiv comes a day after Ukrainian drone strikes killed at least nine people at warehouses belonging to a major Russian shopping website.
Volodymyr Zelensky said the strikes targeted “significant logistical facilities”, accusing Wildberries of providing equipment for drones and navigation equipment for the Russian military.
Recap: Russia pounds Kyiv with 41 different types of missiles in overnight attack
Russia hit Kyiv with an overnight onslaught involving 41 different types of missiles in the early hours of Sunday morning, Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Residential buildings, warehouses, a supermarket and a dormitory were among the structures damaged, said Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko, adding that three people were in a serious condition.
At one location in western Kyiv, emergency workers picked through smouldering debris and doused bombed-out apartments.
Closer to the city centre, the strikes damaged a frequently targeted metro station and destroyed an underground pedestrian passage nearby, leaving a pile of rubble.
A weapons officer checks the missile parts at the metro station after a large-scale attack overnight (Getty)
Nicole Wootton-Cane19 July 2026 20:00
Kyiv residents react to Russian strikes
Residents in Kyiv have spoken of their determination and fear after Russia launched an overnight onslaught of strikes on the capital.
A resident who identified himself as Vlad told Reuters he had been inside his apartment when a blast tore off his balcony door, which smashed him in the head.
“My grandmother lives with me, and she can’t walk. How could I run away and leave her behind?” he said.
Others continued ordinary life with quiet resilience. Later on Sunday, workers cleared rubble from around the damaged Kyiv metro station and caved-in underpass as passersby looked on, seemingly unfazed.
Fruit vendors resumed business as usual in their makeshift stalls as an excavator poured debris into a dump truck in the background.
“Kyiv will flourish,” said Iryna Lomeyko, 68, hinting at the stubborn normality of a neighbourhood that has been heavily damaged by repeated Russian strikes.
“Those idiots destroy everything, but we’ll repair it and build anew,” she added. “Everything will be alright.”
Nicole Wootton-Cane19 July 2026 19:00
Watch: Russia pounds Kyiv with ballistic missiles leaving one dead and 13 injuredRussia pounds Kyiv with ballistic missiles leaving one dead and 13 injured
Nicole Wootton-Cane19 July 2026 18:00
Death toll from Russian strikes rises to six
The number of people killed after a Russian attack on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities has risen to six, authorities said.
Dozens of others were wounded after Russia launched 41 missiles and 125 drones across Ukraine overnight, according to the Ukrainian air force.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said most of the missiles had targeted the capital.
Later on Sunday, a Russian attack on a postal facility near Ukraine’s second-largest city of Kharkiv killed three people and wounded at least 20, according to the regional administration.
Russian guided bombs also hit the cities of Kherson and Sumy, local authorities and Ukraine’s emergency service reported, with each of the strikes leaving at least one person dead.
Nicole Wootton-Cane19 July 2026 17:27
Recap: Russian online retail warehouses hit by Ukraine drones in deadly attack
Waves of Ukrainian drone attacks hit Russian oil depots and businesses – including two warehouses for a key online retailer – on Saturday, killing at least nine people.
Kyiv’s forces are continuing their relentless aerial campaign against energy infrastructure and military targets inside Russia, aiming to undermine Moscow’s war effort and make Russians feel the consequences of the Kremlin’s all-out invasion of Ukraine that is well into its fifth year.
Two sprawling facilities used by major Russian retailer, Wildberries, were hit: one in the town of Kotovsk in the Tambov region, roughly 220 miles from the border with Ukraine, and another one in the city of Elektrostal, about some 30 miles east of Moscow.
A Ukrainian drone also hit an oil depot in the city of Noginsk, just north of Elektrostal, sparking a fire and prompting evacuations of a nearby maternity hospital and a residential building.
You can read the full report below:
Nicole Wootton-Cane19 July 2026 17:00
In pictures: Kyiv surveys damage from overnight Russian onslaught
A Ukrainian man holds his dog looking at the damage to this apartment building (Getty)
A local resident cleans his damaged apartment (AFP/Getty)
People walk past damaged cars parked in a street following missile strikes in Kyiv (AFP/Getty)
Nicole Wootton-Cane19 July 2026 16:00
Zelensky calls for ‘acceleration’ from European partners over air defence
President Volodymyr Zelensky has called for an “acceleration” from Ukraine’s European partners in providing air defence systems following a major aerial assault from Russia overnight.
In a post on X, the Ukrainian president said it is “very important” that both the US and EU understand “that air defence missiles are needed to protect lives literally every single day”.
The provision of US-made Patriot air defence systems has becoming a growing issue in the war as Zelensky continues to appeal to the US for stocks to be directed to Ukraine.
Nicole Wootton-Cane19 July 2026 15:30
Russian deals and a Ukrainian hit job: Inside Monaco’s darkest chapter
Tainted by murder, money laundering and now a parcel bomb with a suspect reportedly shot dead in Kyiv, Monaco, Helen Kirwan-Taylor explores the dark underbelly of the iconic Mediterranean resort.
Nicole Wootton-Cane19 July 2026 15:00
Watch: Putin ‘will never make peace in Ukraine’ – Here’s the reason why
Despite four grinding years and Ukraine now successfully smashing Russia’s energy infrastructure, Vladimir Putin has no interest in trying to end the war for one key reason, Bill Browder tells Sam Kiley on the ‘World of Trouble’ podcast.
The anti-corruption campaigner, who once ran the biggest investment fund in Russia, has fought against Putin for nearly two decades.
You can watch the full recording below:
World of Trouble | Bill Browder
Nicole Wootton-Cane19 July 2026 14:30
Lindsey Graham’s death deprives Ukraine of a key ally who had Trump’s ear, experts say
Senator Lindsey Graham’s sudden death has removed a “vital diplomatic buffer between Washington and Kyiv”, experts have said, complicating support for Ukraine at a vital juncture of the war with Russia.
Jaroslava Barbieri, a Research Fellow at the Ukraine Forum at Chatham House, told The Independent that Graham has been a critical voice in US foreign policy when it comes to support for Ukraine.
You can read more about what Senator Graham’s death means for Ukraine below:
Nicole Wootton-Cane19 July 2026 14:00