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Kyiv's missile shortage on 5 August 2026
Summary
A retrospective on the day Russian ballistic missiles and drones struck Kyiv and none of the missiles were intercepted.
What did a shortage of air-defence missiles mean on the ground? On 5 August 2026, Russian forces launched dozens of ballistic missiles and drones at Kyiv. At least 17 people were killed, including eight civilians at a railway station in Kyiv Oblast, and dozens more were wounded.
According to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, none of the missiles were intercepted by Ukrainian forces, because of a shortage of Patriot missiles.
The days before
The attack came two days after another deadly incident on the Russian side of the war. On 3 August 2026, at least seven people, including three children, were killed and 40 others injured when drone debris fell on a crowded beach in Gelendzhik, in Russia's Krasnodar Krai.
On the same date, the Russian opposition politician Boris Nadezhdin announced that he had fled to France. He had tried to contest the 2024 presidential election on a platform against the war. He said he left after growing pressure on him and his family.
What the day showed
The reported toll of 5 August 2026 included civilians at a railway station, and Zelenskyy's explanation was specific: the missiles got through because Patriot interceptors were in short supply.
