President Volodymyr Zelensky says Russia has broadened its strikes to include Ukrainian data centres and internet providers, deliberately disrupting connectivity for civilians. A drone strike damaged a Datagroup facility in Kyiv and multiple civilians were killed, including a 14-year-old Israeli citizen. Around 100,000 households experienced internet outages, firms are activating backups abroad, and Ukraine is moving to strengthen protection for critical communications as the EU approves €6.6bn in support.
Zelensky: Russia Targets 'Ordinary Life' by Striking Ukraine's Data Centres and ISPs
Four people were killed in a Russian drone strike on a business centre in Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said [DSNS Ukraine]
President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that Russia is expanding its campaign of attacks to include Ukraine's data centres and internet providers, deliberately aiming to disrupt everyday life for civilians across the country.
Strike on Kyiv Business Centre
On Friday a Russian drone struck a multi-storey business centre in Kyiv, damaging a Datagroup-operated data centre and killing several civilians. Initial reports said four people were killed in that strike; Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko later said seven people had been killed and 59 injured after a series of overnight attacks.
In a separate incident a 14-year-old boy, an Israeli citizen, was reported killed when a residential building in Kyiv's Pecherskyi district was struck.
Targets, Claims and Impact
Moscow confirmed it struck a data-centre site, claiming the facility was being used by Ukrainian military intelligence. The Russian defence ministry also named several other data processing and telecommunications centres it said were targeted in recent days, including New-Telco, United DC, Kyivstar and Parkovyi.
About 100,000 households in Kyiv and the surrounding region lost internet access after the strikes. Some private companies have moved critical data to overseas servers and backup sites; Datagroup said its services continue to operate from backups while damage is assessed.
Local authorities in Lutsk reported electronic information boards at public-transport stops were offline, attributing the outage to damage from strikes on Kyiv data centres.
A 14-year-old boy, an Israeli citizen, was killed when a Russian drone hit a multi-storey residential building in Kyiv's central Pecherskyi district [DSNS Kyiv]
Government Response and Warnings
“The Russians are constantly expanding their escalation operation: American and other businesses, data centres, internet providers – for Russia, all ordinary life is simply a target,” Zelensky wrote on social media. He urged the international community to respond so that “Russia feels the response to its terror.”
Ukraine's foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, said the strikes were intended to disrupt the flow of “life-saving information” such as rapid missile and drone alerts. Serhii Beskrestnov, Zelensky's adviser on defence technologies, warned of potential local disruptions and higher internet costs as repair expenses are passed on, but stressed Ukraine's internet is highly decentralised and the country “will not be left without internet access.”
Late on Friday Zelensky said his defence and security teams had made "additional decisions" to strengthen protection for data centres and other critical communications infrastructure to ensure continuity of service.
Wider Context
In recent weeks Moscow has also intensified strikes on Ukraine's energy and railway infrastructure, seeking to maximise disruption ahead of winter. Ukraine's military has targeted Russian oil refineries and logistics hubs in response, saying these sites support Russia's war effort.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said he would “give careful thought” to resuming direct peace negotiations with Kyiv but added that Ukraine “must feel our retaliatory strikes” and that decisions will be taken “based on the Russian Federation's interests.” Zelensky has said he is willing to take part in trilateral talks involving the US.
International Reactions
The European Union agreed to release €6.6bn in support for Ukraine, including €900m for the EU's Military Assistance Mission and a €1bn fund for joint equipment procurement. Poland has opened an investigation into a suspected arson attack on a Starlink ground station; Polish prosecutors said there is a reasonable suspicion the attack was ordered by Russian special services. Moscow has not commented.
As the conflict continues, NATO and EU members have warned of potential hybrid attacks aimed at testing allied resolve. The attacks on communications infrastructure underline the growing civilian impact of the conflict and the strategic importance of protecting digital and civilian systems.
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