Russia Strikes Kyivstar Headquarters as Attacks Hit Ukraine’s Data Centres

A telecommunications facility in Ukraine. Photo credit: Unsplash.

 KYIV, September 28, 2026: Russia struck the Kyiv headquarters of Kyivstar, Ukraine’s largest mobile service provider, on Sunday as attacks continued against telecommunications and data infrastructure in and around the Ukrainian capital.

Kyivstar confirmed that its head office in Kyiv had been hit during the attack. The company said that no casualties were reported among its employees.

The Russian Defence Ministry separately said its forces had struck a data centre belonging to Vodafone Ukraine, the country’s second-largest mobile network operator. Vodafone Ukraine had not immediately responded to the claim, so the Russian account could not be independently confirmed.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said a data centre in Kyiv was struck twice on Sunday morning. According to his account, two children and an adult were wounded in the attack.

The latest strikes are part of a wider series of attacks on Ukraine’s digital infrastructure. Ukraine’s Digital Ministry said attacks on data centres belonging to internet providers during the previous week had disrupted services for about 100,000 households in Kyiv and the surrounding region.

Several communications and internet facilities have reportedly been damaged during the recent attacks. Ukrainian authorities have been working to protect data centres and other critical communications infrastructure as the conflict increasingly affects digital networks.

Russia has said that some of the infrastructure it targeted was linked to military communications. However, attacks on telecommunications and data facilities can also affect civilian internet, television and other services.

The latest strike comes amid continued Russian and Ukrainian attacks on infrastructure far from the front lines. Both sides have increasingly used drones and missiles against targets they say are connected to the opposing side’s military capabilities.

The impact on Ukraine’s communications network is significant because mobile networks and data centres support not only ordinary communications but also emergency alerts, internet services and the operation of businesses and public institutions.

Ukraine has accused Russia of deliberately targeting critical digital infrastructure. Moscow has not provided independent evidence for all of its claims about the facilities targeted.

The reported damage and casualties should therefore be distinguished between confirmed company statements, Ukrainian officials’ accounts and Russian military claims. Independent verification of some battlefield claims remains difficult.