Ukraine's children return to school as Russia launches drones and ballistic missiles at Kyiv

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched an overnight barrage of drones and cruise and ballistic missiles at Kyiv, officials said Monday, as children were returning to school across Ukraine. Some pupils found classes canceled because of damage from the attack.

Several series of explosions rocked the Ukrainian capital. Debris from intercepted missiles and drones fell in every district of Kyiv, wounding three people and damaging two kindergartens, the Interior Ministry said. City authorities reported multiple fires.

After more than 900 days of war, Russia and Ukraine show no sign of letting up in the fight or moving closer to the negotiating table. Both sides are pursuing ambitious ground offensives, with the Ukrainians driving into Russia’s Kursk region and the Russians pushing deeper into the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine that is part of the industrial Donbas region.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that Ukraine’s Kursk assault won't prevent Russian forces from advancing in eastern Ukraine.

“The main task that the enemy set for themselves — to stop our offensive in Donbas — they haven’t achieved it,” Putin told students during a trip to Siberia. He predicted that the Kursk offensive will fail and that Kyiv officials will want “to move to peace talks.”

Speaking in the southern city of Zaporizhzhia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country’s operation in Kursk had drawn Russian troops away from southern Ukraine, but acknowledged that it had not yet succeeded in diverting Russian forces from the eastern frontlines, where the city of Pokrovsk is at risk of falling.

“We see that it is difficult there, and the most combat-ready Russian brigades have been concentrated in this area because it has always been their main target — Donbas. The complete, total occupation of Donbas: Donetsk and Luhansk regions,” Zelenskyy said.

He said last month that the aim of the Kursk incursion is to create a buffer zone that might prevent further attacks by Moscow across the border.

Russia launched 35 missiles and 26 Shahed drones at Ukraine overnight from Sunday to Monday, the Ukrainian air force said. Nine ballistic missiles, 13 cruise missiles and 20 drones were downed, it said.

Kyiv residents hurried into bomb shelters.

Oksana Argunova, an 18-year-old student, said she was still shaking after the scare.

“I woke up, my neighbor was shouting: ‘Let’s go down (to the shelter), there are big explosions.’ We all ran,” Argunova told The Associated Press.

Monday was the first day back at school after the summer vacation. In Ukraine, the day involves ceremonies and rituals, with students and often teachers wearing traditional costumes.

But the massive air assaults have taken a toll. In one last week, an F-16 warplane that Ukraine received from Western partners crashed. The pilot, one of the few Ukrainians trained to fly the jets, was killed.

Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof, visiting Ukraine for the first time since taking office, traveled with Zelenskyy to Zaporizhzhia, 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the front line.

They visited an underground school, and Schoof announced his government would give Ukraine 200 million euros ($221 million) to help protect and repair the electricity infrastructure targeted almost daily by Russian bombs.

“It must never be normal for children to have to go to school underground. It must never become normal for people’s homes to be cold because power plants have been bombed,” Schoof said.

He said the Netherlands would continue providing F-16 fighter jets and munitions to Ukraine and noted a plan floated last month by Republican U.S. Sen. Lindsay Graham to let retired F-16 pilots from other countries join the fight in Ukraine.

“That would be an interesting idea, because then you can just speed up the process of deploying the F-16s. But we have to look into those things, with all the countries involved with the F-16 coalition,” Schoof said.

In Kyiv, children and parents gathered outside a damaged school as firefighters put out flames and removed rubble.

One mother arrived with her 7-year-old daughter, Sophia, unaware it had been hit. It was Sophia’s first day at a new school, her mother said, after a frightening night.

“We hid in the bathroom, where it was relatively safe,” said the mother, who gave only her first name, Olena.

Ukraine and Russia are battering each other with regular long-range drone and missile strikes, sometimes launching more than 100 weapons in aerial attacks that suggest they are still pouring resources into weapon production.

Russian air defenses intercepted 158 Ukrainian drones overnight, including two over Moscow and nine over the surrounding region, the Defense Ministry said.

The Ukrainian headquarters of the Danish humanitarian organization DanChurchAid was destroyed by missile fragments, its head Jonas Nøddekær said.

Elsewhere, 18 people were injured in a Sunday evening strike on a center for social and psychological rehabilitation of children and an orphanage in Ukraine’s northeastern city of Sumy, regional authorities said. The regional prosecutor’s office said there were no children in the facility, and the injured included people in nearby homes.

Associated Press writers Lori Hinnant in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine; Emma Burrows in London; and Jan. M. Olsen in Copenhagen, Denmark, contributed to this report.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a joint press conference with Netherlands' Prime Minister Dick Schoof in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, Monday Sept. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Cadets attend the first day at school in a cadet lyceum in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. Children and students went to school despite the fact that Kyiv was hit by massive Russian missile barrage early in the morning, causing fires, damaged buildings and infrastructure objects. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

Schoolchildren and their parents enter an underground school on the first day at school in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. The purpose-built "bunker school" aims to provide a learning environment safe from Russian everyday airstrikes. (AP Photo/Andrii Marienko)

Schoolgirls sing the national anthem on the first day at school in a cadet lyceum in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. Children and students went to school despite the fact that Kyiv was hit by massive Russian missile barrage early in the morning, causing fires, damaged buildings and infrastructure objects. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

A young cadet takes a nap at the first lesson in a cadet lyceum on the first day at school in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. Children and students went to school despite the fact that Kyiv was hit by massive Russian missile barrage early in the morning, causing fires, damaged buildings and infrastructure objects. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

First graders yawn as they attend a ceremony marking the start of classes at a school as part of the traditional opening of the school year known as "Day of Knowledge" in Makiivka, Russian-controlled Donetsk region, eastern Ukraine, on Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexei Alexandrov)

Young cadets attend the first lesson in a cadet lyceum on the first day at school in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. Children and students went to school despite the fact that Kyiv was hit by massive Russian missile barrage early in the morning, causing fires, damaged buildings and infrastructure objects. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

Young cadets get ready for a ceremony in a cadet lyceum on the first day at school in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. Children and students went to school despite the fact that Kyiv was hit by massive Russian missile barrage early in the morning, causing fires, damaged buildings and infrastructure objects. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

Schoolgirls attend the first lesson in a cadet lyceum on the first day at school in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. Children and students went to school despite the fact that Kyiv was hit by massive Russian missile barrage early in the morning, causing fires, damaged buildings and infrastructure objects. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

First graders sit in a classroom after a ceremony marking the start of classes at a school as part of the traditional opening of the school year known as "Day of Knowledge" in Makiivka, Russian-controlled Donetsk region, eastern Ukraine, on Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexei Alexandrov)

This photo released by Belgorod regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov's Telegram channel on Monday, Sept. 2, 2024, shows the destroyed kindergarten after a missile attack by the Armed Forces of Ukraine on the city of Belgorod, Russia. (Belgorod Region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov Telegram channel via AP)

This photo released by Belgorod regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov's Telegram channel on Monday, Sept. 2, 2024, Firefighters extinguish burning cars in the courtyard of an apartment building after a missile attack by the Armed Forces of Ukraine on the city of Belgorod, Russia. (Belgorod Region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov Telegram channel via AP)

A rescue worker extinguishes a fire burning residential buildings destroyed during a Russian attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Sept. 1 2024. (AP Photo/Yevhen Titov)

Gas burns in front of a business center damaged by a Russian attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Sept. 1 2024. (AP Photo/Yevhen Titov)

Firefighters extinguish a fire after a rocket hit a building of a higher education institution in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024..(AP Photo/Vasilisa Stepanenko)

First-graders attend the traditional ceremony for the first day of school in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, Sunday Sept. 1, 2024. Zaporizhzhia schoolchildren celebrated the traditional first day of school near the frontline. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

A woman collects her possessions in the yard of a house destroyed after a Russian strike on the residential neighbourhood in Cherkaska Lozova, Kharkiv region, Ukraine, Saturday Aug. 31. 2024. (AP Photo/Yevhen Titov)

Paramedics help an injured man to walk out of the rubble at a sports facility destroyed after a Russian attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Sept. 1 2024. (AP Photo/Yevhen Titov)

People help an injured man walk out of rubble at a sports facility destroyed after a Russian attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Sept. 1 2024. (AP Photo/Yevhen Titov)

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Sphere, Las Vegas' transformational new masterpiece, stole the show Saturday night at UFC 306, but Merab Dvalishvili put on a performance not to be forgotten in capturing the bantamweight championship with a unanimous decision over Sean O'Malley.

The judges scored it 49-46, 48-47 and 48-47 in favor of Dvalishvili (18-4), a 33-year-old from the country of Georgia. He used a ground-and-pound attack to control most of the action against O'Malley (18-2).

O'Malley, 29, who lives in Phoenix, was a slight -125 favorite at BetMGM Sportsbook.

Valentina Shevchenko reclaimed the women's flyweight championship with all three judges awarding her a 50-45 victory over Alexa Grasso in the co-main event.

This was the third consecutive meeting between the two after Grasso took Shevchenko's belt in the first match. The second was a draw.

The third one wasn't closer, with the 36-year-old Shevchenko (24-4-1) using a ground-and-pound strategy to win all three rounds over 31-year-old Grasso (16-4-1) on the judges' cards.

“It's so huge," said Shevchenko, who is from Kyrgyzstan. "It like a dream come true fighting in the Sphere.”

This show at the Sphere was unlike any show in the UFC's history, taking full advantage of the 160,000-square-foot high-definition LED screen to create an outer-space type feel as the pay-per-view portion of the card was about to begin.

UFC President Dana White called this card his “love letter to Mexico,” and mini stories of the neighboring country's history and culture as part of a celebration of the country’s Independence Day weekend were told on the screen throughout the evening. One created the illusion the arena was moving as the video played out.

Seven Mexican fighters, including Grasso, populated the card, and chants from the crowd of “Mexico” broke out several times.

Aztec pyramids seeming to hover over one contest in the octagon changed from night to morning. Another fight took place with a Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) holiday scene that included dressed up male and female skeletons lighting up the screen. Other matches had similar scenes dominating the background.

The screen was used throughout to introduce a tell-of-the-tape of each fighter, and highlights were shown on the building's exterior.

White has said this is a one-and-done given the overwhelming undertaking to put together the show as well as the roughly $20 million cost. To help pay for it, White secured a title sponsor for the first time for one of his PPV cards, making the official name Riyadh Season Noche UFC.

But White has waffled as the event approached, and it's possible the UFC will have future cards at the Sphere, those the organization is contractually obligated to MGM Resorts, which includes T-Mobile Arena. An exception was made for this night and perhaps there will be more.

T-Mobile had its own tribute to Mexican Independence Day three miles away with Canelo Alvarez winning by unanimous decision as the headline fighter.

UFC's in-house production team crew worked with Antigravity Academy production led by founder and Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Carlos López Estrada to put together this event.

Heavyweight champion Jon Jones, considered by many to be the greatest fighter in UFC history, will face Stipe Miocic in UFC 309 on Nov. 16 at New York's Madison Square Garden. Jones has not fought since moving up from light heavyweight to claim the heavyweight crown with a first-round submission of Ciryl Gane on March 4, 2023.

Jones, who was in the crowd wearing a black cowboy hat, and Miocic were scheduled to fight last year, but a pectoral injury forced Jones to postpone.

AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports

Attendees watch Yazmin Jauregui fights Ketlen Souza in a women's strawweight mixed martial arts bout during UFC 306 at the Sphere, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (Wade Vandervort/Las Vegas Sun via AP)

Attendees wait for the main mixed martial arts event during UFC 306 at the Sphere, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (Wade Vandervort/Las Vegas Sun via AP)

Valentina Shevchenko, right, fights Alexa Grasso in a women's flyweight mixed martial arts title bout during UFC 306 at the Sphere, Saturday, Sep. 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (Wade Vandervort/Las Vegas Sun via AP)

Valentina Shevchenko celebrates after defeating Alexa Grasso in a women's flyweight mixed martial arts title bout during UFC 306 at the Sphere, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (Wade Vandervort/Las Vegas Sun via AP)

Sean O'Malley and Merab Dvalishvili appear on screen during UFC 306 at the Sphere, Saturday, Sep. 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (Wade Vandervort/Las Vegas Sun via AP)