Kyiv hit by multiple blasts as Ukraine reports "kamikaze" drone strikes

Kyiv was hit Monday by multiple explosions in which at least four people died and that Ukrainian officials said were caused by Iranian drones sent by Russian forces.

The big picture: Russian President Vladimir Putin's forces stepped up attacks since last Monday when he ordered a missile bombardment on Kyiv and cities across Ukraine in retaliation for the explosion of a bridge linking mainland Russia with occupied Crimea that he blamed on Ukrainian forces.

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Mayor Vitali Klitschko posted an image of what he describes as "the wreckage of one of the kamikaze drones that attacked Kyiv" on Monday morning. Screenshot: Mayor Vitali Klitschko/Twitter

Details: Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram the Ukrainian capital's central Shevchenkiv district was among the areas hit on Monday morning.

• Klitschko wrote in another post that 28 drones had flown toward Kyiv and that most were shot down.
• At least four people have died as a result of the attacks and "there may still be people under the rubble" as search and rescue operations continue, Klitschko wrote in a Telegram post.
• One of the drones struck a residential building and killed three people inside, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of the president's office, wrote on Telegram.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a Telegram post Monday that kamikaze drones and missiles were "attacking all of Ukraine."

What they're saying: "All night and all morning, the enemy terrorizes the civilian population," Zelensky said. "The enemy can attack our cities, but it won't be able to break us."

Meanwhile, Andriy Yermak, Zelensky's chief of staff, in a Telegram post on Monday said Ukraine needed "more air defense systems and as soon as possible."

• "We have no time for slow actions. More weapons to defend the sky and destroy the enemy," Yermak added.

Worth noting: "U.S. and allied security officials say Iran is preparing to send more weapons, including attack drones, to boost Russia’s depleted stockpiles," the Washington Post reports.

• Iran Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani during a news conference Monday denied Iran is providing Russia with drones, per Reuters.

Go deeper: U.S. to give $725 million in additional defense aid to Ukraine

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.