12-year-old girl under the rubble: five dead in Kyiv after a strike by Russian terrorists, rabbi’s prayer and the voice of the Jewish community

The night Russian attack on May 14, 2026, on Ukraine was yet another proof that Putin’s rhetoric about ‘peace’ has nothing to do with reality. Drones and missiles hit Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odesa region, Kyiv region, and other areas, and the main pain of this night was again not military targets, but residential buildings, schools, clinics, and urban infrastructure.

In Kyiv, the death toll rose to five. Rescuers in the Darnytskyi district retrieved the body of a 12-year-old girl from the rubble of a destroyed house. The search and rescue operation continues, with people still being searched for under concrete slabs and debris of the high-rise building.

This is no longer just war statistics. This is a picture of state terror: a destroyed entrance, families without homes, people under the rubble, a child who could not be saved, and a city that met the morning again amidst smoke, sirens, and heavy rescue equipment.

Darnytskyi district: the building collapsed from the first to the ninth floor

The heaviest consequences of the Russian attack fell on the Darnytskyi district of Kyiv. There, a missile destroyed a section of a multi-apartment residential building: the entrance practically collapsed from the first to the ninth floor. Among the dead are already named five people, including a 12-year-old girl.

Earlier, the bodies of two men aged 21 and 30, as well as a woman whose identity was being established, were retrieved from the rubble. Another man died in the hospital after being hospitalized from a gas station that was also hit. Now the tragic list has been supplemented by a child.

According to Ukrainian services and city authorities, more than ten people are considered missing. This means that rescuers are working not only with the destroyed building but also with time: every hour under the rubble can be decisive.

Injured, a child among the victims, and rescuers on the ruins

In Kyiv, dozens of injured were reported. Among them is a one-month-old baby who was poisoned by carbon monoxide. For the Israeli audience, this detail sounds especially painful: when missiles and drones fly at night over residential areas, those who have nothing to do with the war are hit.

Rescuers, dog handlers, psychologists, and heavy engineering equipment are working at the site of the destruction. The dismantling of the rubble is complicated by the condition of the structures: huge slabs, debris of walls, ceilings, and metal elements cannot be removed chaotically so as not to collapse what still holds.

People from surviving apartments were evacuated using aerial lifts. Eyewitnesses spoke of flames, screams, broken windows, and the moment of impact, after which everything around turned into dust, glass, and concrete.

Ukraine under massive attack: more than 180 damaged objects

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky reported that as a result of the night Russian attack on the country, 180 objects were damaged. Of these, more than 50 are ordinary residential buildings. This is an important detail because it destroys the usual Kremlin lie about ‘military targets’.

The overall interception rate, according to Ukrainian data, was over 93%. But even with such air defense work, some missiles and drones reach cities, and debris and blast waves cause enormous damage to residential areas.

In the Kyiv region, seven more people were injured. In Kharkiv, 28 injured were already reported. In the Odesa region, two people were injured. Kyiv became the loudest tragedy of this night, but the Russian attack was broader: it hit the country, civilian infrastructure, and the sense of security.

Zelensky promised a fair response

Zelensky stated that there would be a fair response for the strikes on Ukraine. He also urged the world to increase pressure on Moscow and to be on Ukraine’s side, not to hide behind diplomatic formulas.

This is where the main line of this war passes. Russia tries to sell the world talks about negotiations, while at night it launches missiles at residential buildings. Putin talks about ‘peace’, but his army destroys entrances, kills children, and leaves people under the rubble.

For Israel, such logic is understandable without long explanations. Terror always tries to present itself as an ‘answer’, ‘operation’, or ‘pressure’. But in reality, it is measured very simply: a destroyed apartment, a child’s bed under a concrete slab, a rescuer on the ruins, and a mother waiting for news.

Jewish community of Kyiv: the night tested resilience, but not faith

The post by JCC BEIT Menachem KYIV from Kyiv received special resonance after the attack. The Jewish community center wrote that it was a night that tested resilience, but not faith. The address spoke of the sky over the capital, which trembled with unprecedented fury, of hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles flying where there should be peace, schools, clinics, and children’s laughter.

This wording is important. It translates the tragedy from the language of military reports into the language of community, memory, and human resilience.

JCC BEIT Menachem KYIV expressed condolences to all who lost loved ones, suffered, or were left without a roof over their heads. The center also wrote that prayers are now with the rescuers and those under the rubble.

NANews — Israel News | Nikk.Agency sees in this reaction not only a religious gesture but also a civic position of Ukrainian Jewry. The Kyiv Jewish community does not speak the language of panic. It speaks the language of light, roots, and inner strength — exactly how Jewish tradition knows how to respond to darkness.

Chief Rabbi of Ukraine prays for the salvation of people

After the strike, the Chief Rabbi of Ukraine Moshe Asman reacted. He wrote that he prays and asks the Creator of this world to save people. These words sounded against the backdrop of a destroyed residential apartment building in Kyiv — a building that was destroyed as a result of the Russian attack.

At such a moment, the religious reaction becomes not an abstract phrase, but part of the overall struggle for life. While rescuers dismantle slabs, while relatives wait for news, while the city counts the dead and injured, prayer sounds like a plea for the salvation of those who may still be under the rubble.

For Jewish Ukraine, this is an especially strong image. The Kyiv community has already shown more than once in recent years that the war has not destroyed its internal connection, has not stopped help, holidays, prayers, weddings, educational and community projects. Now this same voice sounds next to the ruins of a residential building — not as despair, but as a plea for life.

A small candle against a great darkness

In the JCC address, a thought was expressed that is close to everyone who knows Jewish history: even a small candle dispels a great darkness. On the night when Russian missiles hit Kyiv, this phrase became not a beautiful metaphor, but a way to hold on.

Prayer at such hours is not just words. It is a connection with roots, with the community, with those who stood firm before and passed on the ability not to disappear in the face of violence.

For Ukrainians, for Jews of Ukraine, for Israelis who follow this war, the tragedy of Kyiv on May 14 is yet another reminder: Russian terror is not limited to the front line. It comes into homes, hospitals, schools, entrances, into a child’s night sleep.

That is why international silence after such attacks looks especially dangerous. When a destroyed house, a deceased 12-year-old girl, and dozens of injured become just ‘news of the day’, the aggressor receives a signal that it can continue.

But Kyiv continues to hold on. Rescuers dismantle the rubble. Doctors treat the injured. Volunteers help the victims. The Jewish community prays and supports people. The Chief Rabbi of Ukraine asks for the salvation of those who may still be alive.

And the world will have to choose again: to call terror terror or to hide behind empty words while new homes turn into ruins.