Kyiv, โUkraine – A large-scale Russian aerial assault on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure overnight resulted in at least four confirmed fatalities and widespread power outages across multiple regions, Ukrainian officials โฃreported Saturday.
The attack, involving โข458 drones and 45 missiles, represents a meaningful โคescalation in Moscow’s targeting of Ukrainian critical infrastructure asโ winter approaches.โ Experts warn the strikes jeopardizeโข Ukraine’s ability to maintain heating โขsupplies during the colder months, potentially impacting millions. This latest offensive follows months of increased Russian attacks aimed at degrading Ukraine’s energy grid, disrupting essential services for civilians and hindering the country’s war effort.
According to theโข Ukrainian Air Force, 406 โคdrones and nine missilesโ were intercepted. Though, strikes โstill caused significant damage, including to a natural gas facility โขcrucial for Ukraine’s heating fuel production.
“Russianโ attacks once againโข targeted people’s daily lives,” stated Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga. “They cut off people’s โคelectricity, water and heating supplies, destroyed โcritical infrastructure and damaged theโ railway network.”
President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed casualties in both Dnipro and Kharkiv. “In Dnipro, a russian drone directly struckโข aโ residential building; to date,โฃ three people are known to have died in the city. Unluckily, there were also โcasualties in Kharkiv,” he said.
Emergency power outages were reported in Kyiv and Kharkiv,โ with Kharkiv also experiencing a complete disruptionโฃ ofโข its water supply. The Poltava region reported “no electricity, water and partial heating”โข in the โฃcity of Kremenchuk.
(fas/fas)
