Breaking: Russian drone strikes SBU headquarters in central Kyiv, injuring at least 7

Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated.

A Russian drone struck the headquarters of Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) opposite St. Sophia's Cathedral in central Kyiv on Sept. 4, injuring at least seven people, local authorities said.

An air raid alert was activated in Kyiv at around 3 p.m. local time, followed by explosions in the city center about half an hour later. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the attack damaged a non-residential building in the Shevchenkivskyi district, without providing further details.

The drone was targeting the office of SBU acting head Oleksandr Poklad, President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

"I gave Poklad the task of responding to this Russian attack in an appropriate, significant, and — if possible — symmetrical manner once everything is ready," Zelensky said.

Seven people were injured in the attack, six of whom had been hospitalized as of 4:30 p.m. local time, Klitschko said.

The Russian attack also damaged the Zavertailo restaurant, located near the SBU building, the restaurant's co-owner, Stanislav Zavertailo, said on Telegram.

Zavertailo said one restaurant guest was injured in the strike and hospitalized. People were sheltering in the building's basement during the attack, he added.

"Everyone is safe and unharmed, but they are still in shock, so everyone will need to be examined again," Zavertailo wrote.

The Russian attack marked the second time a Zavertailo restaurant has been damaged. Another Zavertailo branch in Kyiv's Podil district was damaged overnight on May 24. The blast wave shattered the restaurant's windows and damaged the building's facade, but the restaurant resumed operations later that day.

Zavertailo is also a co-owner of the Honey restaurant chain. One of its branches was damaged in a Russian attack on Aug. 28, 2025. The restaurant near St. Sophia's Cathedral is therefore the third Zavertailo-owned establishment to be damaged in Russian attacks.

The attack came on the ninth consecutive day of Russian strikes on Kyiv, with the capital facing near-constant attacks by jet-powered Shahed-type drones, as well as a ballistic missile attack earlier in the week.

Constant airraid alerts, air defense fire and explosions have taken a toll on Kyiv residents, depriving them of sleep and increasing anxiety throughout the day.

"We're tired. We're very, very tired," Diana To Hang, a student, told the Kyiv Independent on Sept. 2 after a Russian drone strike on a university in the capital.

"A lot of people right now are patriotic and they're doing everything they can to help people who aren't safe right now get out of those situations. But looking at the situation, I can see that it’s simply not getting any better, and we still have winter ahead of us," she added.

The onslaught has prompted Zelensky to announce a change in Ukraine's aerial alert system.

Under the new plan, alerts will be divided into red and yellow levels, with yellow corresponding to drone threats and red signaling incoming missiles and massive combined attacks.