Residents in Kyiv Shelter as Drones Attack

Local resident Viktor Vasylenko recounted the terrifying experience of sheltering in a corridor with his young daughter during a series of night-time drone attacks. He described her panic and nausea and expressed how this was the closest they had ever been to an attack. Vasylenko's family, like many others in the area, always prepared for such incidents, but the severity of this particular attack caught them off guard. "My wife thought that the house would collapse in half," he said.

During the attack, Latvia's president, Edgars Rinkevics, was visiting Kyiv and sought refuge in a bomb shelter. He later shared a photo of himself in the dark shelter on social media. The French foreign ministry also condemned the drone barrage, emphasizing their firm stance against such actions.

The ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine has intensified in recent months, with the city of Avdiivka becoming a focal point of the fighting. Russian forces have nearly encircled the city, leading to increased tensions and military actions. The Ukrainian army confirmed that the main target of the recent drone attack was Kyiv, but air defenses across the south were also activated in response.

Notably, the attack on Kyiv occurred on the same day Ukraine commemorates Holodomor, a devastating famine orchestrated by the Soviet Union in the 1930s. President Volodymyr Zelensky described the timing as "symbolic" and criticized the Russian leadership for their pride in causing harm. "More than 70 Shahed on the night of the Holodomor Remembrance Day... The Russian leadership is proud of the fact that it can kill," Zelensky stated on social media.

Zelensky attended a ceremony with Kyiv's top military brass, holding candles, to mark the event.

"We mark the solemn anniversary of the Holodomor as the brave people of Ukraine continue to defend their freedom and Ukraine's sovereignty against Russia's brutal war of aggression," President Biden said in a statement.

Ukraine says Holodomor — Ukrainian for "death by starvation" — was caused deliberately by Soviet agricultural policies.

Moscow denies this, and says it was part of a wider famine that also affected Russian parts of the Soviet Union.

Zelensky said it was "impossible" for Kyiv to forgive or forget the "horrific crimes of genocide," and thanked the growing number of countries that had recognized Holodomor as a deliberate crime against Ukraine.

"They tried to subjugate us, to kill us, to exterminate us," Zelensky said. "They failed."

Switzerland's President Alain Berset was in Kyiv Saturday and paid homage to the victims of Holodomor that he said was "provoked by Soviet leaders".

The pair discussed "humanitarian demining, the use of frozen profits from the assets of the aggressor country and the peace formula," according to Zelensky.

Switzerland's tradition of neutrality has been put to the test following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. While the Alpine country has joined the EU in imposing sanctions on Moscow, it has refused to allow countries that possess Swiss-made weapons to send them to Kyiv.

In response to Moscow's withdrawal from the United Nations-brokered grain deal in July, Kyiv has established a new corridor in the Black Sea. However, this corridor continues to operate under significant risk.

"Through the corridor established by Kyiv, we have already accumulated more than $100 million," said Zelensky.

Drones have played a significant role in the conflict, with Ukraine utilizing them extensively and even launching drones into Russia and annexed Crimea.