There is no sign of a ceasefire before Christmas: Russia fires dozens of rockets at Ukraine, and sirens are wailing across the country. “Don’t ignore the air alert, stay in the shelters,” warns the President’s Office. Blackouts occur in numerous places.
According to Ukrainian sources, Russia has launched a new wave of missile attacks. Explosions were reported from the capital Kyiv, the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv and the Black Sea region of Odessa, among others. According to local authorities, critical infrastructure was hit in the south of the country. Rocket fire was also reported from numerous other regions, including Zaporizhia, Mykolaiv, Vinnytsia, Poltava and Dniprotepetrovsk. Russia again specifically targeted the energy infrastructure.
Up to 60 Russian missiles were spotted, said the governor of the southern Ukrainian region of Mykolaiv, Vitaly Kim. In the southern Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, a residential building is said to have been hit, and people are suspected to be under the rubble.
Sirens warned of airstrikes across the country. “Don’t ignore the air alert, stay in the shelters,” the deputy head of the Presidential Office, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, urged the population via Telegram. Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko also called on residents of the capital to seek protection. The metro no longer runs there, the stations are to be used as emergency shelters. According to the Ukrainian operating company, rail traffic is also affected by power failures in several eastern and central parts of the country.
The attacks resulted in numerous blackouts. The operator Oblenergo announced that the electricity had failed completely in Kharkiv. Power outages were also reported from the north-eastern Sumy region, and the Kharkiv region is also completely without electricity. Since October, the Russian military has attacked Ukraine’s energy infrastructure in several waves.
The Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine also reported rocket fire. In the town of Lantratowka in the Luhansk region, 8 people are said to have been killed and 20 people injured by fire from the Ukrainian side. This was reported by the Russian state news agency TASS, according to local rescue services.
