Russia launched a massive barrage of missiles and drones targeting energy infrastructure in Ukraine on Wednesday, hitting a hot power plant and forcing Ukrainians to take shelter in substations on Christmas morning.
The strikes on Ukraine’s fuel and energy sources included air, surface, and sea-based missiles as well as 106 Shahed and other types of drones, the Ukrainian military said. It claims to have intercepted 59 missiles and 54 drones, while another 52 drones are jammed.
“(Russian President Vladimir) Putin deliberately chose Christmas to attack. What can be inhuman?” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on X. “They are still fighting to cut off the electricity in Ukraine.”
Meanwhile, in Russia, one woman died and three people were injured after debris from a crashed plane fell on a shopping mall in the city of Vladikavkaz. Head of the Russian Republic of North Ossetia-Alania, Gov. Sergey Menyaylo, said security footage showed that the explosion happened outside the Alania shopping center on Wednesday morning.
At least one person was killed when Russia attacked the Dnipro region of Ukraine, said Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba on Telegram, adding that the heating of 155 residential buildings was disrupted. He also said that 500,000 people in Kharkiv region do not have heat.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said one Russian missile passed through the airspace of Moldova and Romania.
Energy minister Herman Halushchenko said Russia is also “heavily attacking the energy infrastructure.” The Ukrainian military said that several missiles were fired in the areas of Kharkiv, Dnipro and Poltava in the east of the country.
Get daily world news
Get the day’s top news, politics, economics, and current affairs, delivered to your inbox once a day.
Halushchenko said the energy distributor has taken the necessary measures to limit consumption. “As soon as the security situation permits, the electricity workers will find the damage caused,” he said. State-owned utility Ukrenergo implemented an early nationwide blackout due to “massive missile attacks,” resulting in power outages in several districts of the capital, Kyiv.
Ukraine’s largest private energy company, DTEK, said Russia struck one of its thermal power plants on Wednesday morning, making it the 13th attack on Ukraine’s power grid this year.
“Denying light and warmth to millions of peace-loving people as they celebrate Christmas is a depraved and evil act that must be answered,” Maxim Timchenko, CEO of DTEK wrote on his X account.
At least seven strikes were targeted at Kharkiv, sparking fires across the city, regional head Oleh Syniehubov wrote on Telegram. At least three people were injured, local authorities said.
“Kharkiv is under heavy missile fire. A series of explosions went off in the city and there are still missiles flying towards the city. Stay in safe places,” said Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said in its Wednesday morning report that it had shot down 59 Ukrainian planes overnight, including over Belgorod, Voronezh, Kursk, Bryansk and Tambov regions, as well as the Sea of Azov. It did not mention the North Ossetia-Alania incident.
Four people were also killed as a result of the Ukrainian shooting in the city of Lgov in the Kursk region, said the head of the region Alexander Khinshtein. Three people died after several houses and a hair salon were hit, he said. Another person later died in hospital.
© 2024 The Canadian Press
