KYIV — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday denounced Russia’s overnight and early morning assault, during which more than 100 missiles and nearly 100 attack drones were launched against Ukraine.
The attacks, which Zelenskyy said caused numerous deaths and injuries, severely impacted Ukraine’s energy sector, targeting critical civilian infrastructure across multiple regions including Kharkiv, Kyiv, Odesa, and others. The barrage, reportedly Russia’s largest against Ukraine in weeks, began around midnight and continued past daybreak, striking 15 regions — more than half the country.
Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal confirmed the extensive damage to the energy infrastructure, leading to emergency power cuts across various regions. He appealed to Ukraine’s allies for long-range weapons to target the source of these missile launches within Russia.
The Russian Defense Ministry claimed that the attacks were directed at critical energy infrastructure supporting Ukraine’s military-industrial complex, asserting that all designated targets were hit.
In the capital Kyiv, explosions disrupted power and water supplies, while casualties were reported in multiple regions, including Lutsk, Dnipropetrovsk, and Zaporizhzhia. Blackouts and infrastructure damage were widespread, affecting areas from Sumy in the east to Rivne in the west.
In response to the widespread outages, Ukraine’s regional officials reopened “points of invincibility,” where civilians can charge devices and seek shelter.
Meanwhile, in Russia, Ukrainian drones reportedly attacked residential buildings in Saratov and Engels, injuring four people. Russia’s Defense Ministry reported intercepting 22 Ukrainian drones over several regions, including Saratov and Yaroslavl. — Agencies