KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia invaded most of Ukraine On Monday, a large number of missiles and drones were fired, killing four people, injuring more than a dozen and damaging energy facilities in what President Volodymyr Zelensky described as “vicious.”
The barrage of more than 100 missiles and the same number of drones began around midnight and continued into the day in what appeared to be Russia’s biggest offensive in weeks.
Ukraine’s Air Force reported that the launch of cruise and ballistic missiles followed the launch of Russian drones in the eastern, northern, southern and central regions.
“Like previous Russian strikes, this one was very bad, targeting critical civilian infrastructure,” Zelenskyy said, adding that most of the country was targeted – from the Kharkiv region and Kiev to Odesa and the west.
An explosion was heard in the capital city of Kyiv. Mayor Vitaly Klitschko said the attack disrupted electricity and water supplies in the city.
Denis Shmihal, Prime Minister of Ukraine Russia launched drones, cruise missiles and hypersonic ballistic missiles at 15 Ukrainian regions – more than half of the country.
“Energy infrastructure has once again become a target for Russian terrorists,” said Shmihal, adding that state-owned power grid operator Ukrenergo has been forced to implement emergency blackouts to stabilize the system.
He urged Ukraine’s allies to provide it Long range weapons Allowing them to be used on targets inside Russia.
“To stop the barbaric shelling of Ukrainian cities, it is necessary to destroy the Russian missile launch site,” Schmihal said. “We count on the support of our allies and will certainly pay Russia.”
US President Joe Biden called the Russian attack on energy infrastructure “barbaric” and said he had “re-prioritised US air defense exports so they will go to Ukraine first”. “The United States is increasing energy supplies to Ukraine to repair its systems and strengthen the resilience of Ukraine’s energy grid,” he added.
The Russian Defense Ministry said the attacks against critical energy infrastructure facilities that support the operation of Ukraine’s military-industrial complex “used long-range precision air and sea-based weapons and attack drones. All designated targets were hit.”
At least four people were killed – one in the western city of Lutsk, one in the central Dnipropetrovsk region, one in Zhytomyr in the center of the country and one in the partially occupied Zaporizhia region in the southeast, local officials said. Thirteen others were injured – one in the Kyiv region surrounding the capital, five in Lutsk, three in the southern Mykolaiv region and four in the neighboring Odesa region.
Outages and damage to civilian infrastructure and residential buildings were reported from Sumy region in the east, Mykolayiv and Odesa regions in the south, and Rivne region in the west.
In Sumy province in the east, which borders Russia, local authorities said 194 settlements lost power and another 19 suffered partial blackouts.
Private energy company DTEK said in a statement that “energy workers across the country are working 24/7 to restore light to Ukrainians’ homes,” introducing emergency blackouts.
Following the barrage and blackouts, authorities across Ukraine were ordered to open “invincible points” — shelter-type places where people can charge their phones and other devices and get refreshments during blackouts, Schmihal said. Such points were first opened in the fall of 2022, when Russia targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure with weekly barrages.
In neighboring Poland, the military said Polish and NATO air defenses were activated in the eastern part of the country as a result of the attack.
Meanwhile, in Russia, officials reported a Ukrainian drone strike overnight.
Four people were injured in the central region of Saratoga, where drones struck residential buildings in two towns. One drone hit a residential building in the city of Saratov, and another hit a residential building in the city of Engels, which is home to a previously hit military airfield, local officials said.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said a total of 22 Ukrainian drones were intercepted overnight and early in the morning in eight provinces, including Saratov and Yaroslavl regions in central Russia.
Russia also said its troops had repelled Ukrainian attempts to advance on half a dozen settlements in the Kursk region. Ukraine launched an invasion Russia was not detained on August 6.
Fighting in the region has raised concerns about a nuclear power plant there. International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Croce said he would visit the plant on Tuesday.
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