Explosions rang out in the Ukrainian capital Kiev and other cities early Sunday as Russia launched its largest missile attack since August, targeting power facilities as winter sets in, officials said.
Ukrainians fear that catastrophic damage to the power grid could cause long power outages and increase psychological pressure at a critical moment in the war that Russia began in February 2022. , has been preparing for a major attack on its stymied power system for weeks.
“Another major attack on the power system is underway. The enemy is attacking power generation and transmission facilities across Ukraine,” Ukraine's Energy Minister German Galushchenko wrote on Facebook.
At night, air defense forces could be heard engaging drones over the capital, and in the morning a series of powerful explosions echoed through the city center as missile attacks were underway.
The extent of the damage was not immediately clear. Authorities cut off electricity to many urban areas, including Kiev, surrounding areas and the Dnipropetrovsk region, saying this was a precautionary measure to prevent a surge in the event of damage.
Authorities in northwest Ukraine's Volyn region said energy infrastructure had been damaged, but gave no details. Officials often withhold information about the state of power systems because of the war.
Two people were killed in a nighttime drone attack in the southern city of Mykolaiv, the regional governor announced. The explosion shook the southeastern city of Zaporizhia and the Black Sea port of Odessa, according to a Reuters witness. Further explosions were reported in the Krivi Rif region in the south and Rivne region in the west.
Foreign Minister Andriy Sibikha said: “Russia has carried out one of the largest air attacks, including drones and missiles, against peaceful cities, sleeping civilians and critical infrastructure.”
He described the attack as Moscow's “real response” to a leader who interacted with President Vladimir Putin, revealing German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called the Russian leader on Friday for the first time since late 2022. He said it was something he despised.
Poland, a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member that shares a border with Ukraine to the west, has scrambled its air force into its airspace as a security measure after the Russian attack accused it of using cruise missiles, ballistic missiles and drones. scrambled).
Poland “has put all available forces and resources at its disposal, the on-duty fighter pair has been scrambled, and its ground air defense and radar reconnaissance systems have reached maximum readiness,” X said. Operational command of the military.
Ukraine's air force called on residents to evacuate and provided regular updates on the progress of Russian cruise, ballistic and hypersonic missiles, which it said were speeding through Ukrainian airspace.
In Kiev, falling debris set the roof of a house on fire, injuring at least two people, city officials said on the messaging app Telegram.
“Emergency services were called to the scene,” Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
Russia's last major missile attack on Kiev was on August 26, when officials fired a volley of more than 200 drones and missiles across the country, killing seven people. announced.
