Russia launched a combination of cruise missiles and ballistic missiles against Ukraine’s electrical infrastructure overnight, Ukraine announced Wednesday.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the Christmas attack was not a “spontaneous decision. “
“This is a planned election, only of the goals, but also of the calendar and the date,” Zelensky wrote online. “Today Putin planned to choose Christmas for his attack. What could be more inhumane?
Zelensky said more than 70 missiles had been fired, some of them ballistic, as well as more than a hundred attack drones.
“The enemy has again attacked the energy sector,” Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko wrote on the social media platform Telegram in an earlier alert.
“The transmission system operator is taking the necessary measures to limit consumption to minimize the negative consequences for the energy system,” he said.
The Ukrainian military said an alert had been declared for airstrikes across the country, in reaction to the arrival of missiles in several regions.
Zelensky later said that according to initial reports, the defensive forces managed to intercept more than 50 missiles and “several” drones.
“Unfortunately there were blows. “There are currently power outages in several areas. Electrical engineers are rushing to repair the power as soon as possible,” he said.
The governor of the Kherson region said one had been killed and three others wounded in the past 24 hours.
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A Russian missile strike in Kharkiv in northeastern Ukraine on Wednesday morning wounded at least six people, regional governor Oleh Syniehubov said.
Russia used ballistic missiles, Ukraine’s air force added.
Syniehubov said in a message on Telegram that the attack caused “damage to non-residential civilian infrastructure. “
Meanwhile in Dnipro in central Ukraine, Governor Serhiy Lysak also reported widespread attacks, accusing Moscow of “trying to destroy the region’s power system.”
“Remain in position until the air alert is lifted. Take care!” Lysak told citizens who face freezing temperatures in winter.
The governor added that a search and rescue operation had been completed following the Christmas Eve attacks that killed a 43-year-old man and injured 17 others.
DTEK, Ukraine’s largest military company, said Wednesday that its military plants were attacked via Russia.
“This year is the thirteenth attack on Ukraine’s energy sector and the tenth attack on the company’s electrical facilities,” the company said on the Telegram messaging app.
US President Joe Biden denounced the latest Russian attack on Ukrainian territory as “scandalous” and promised to continue supplying weapons to Ukraine.
“The purpose of this outrageous attack was to cut off the Ukrainian people’s access to heat and power during the winter and jeopardize the security of their grid,” Biden said.
He said that he directed the Department of Defense to continue a “surge” of weapons deliveries to Kyiv.
Biden will be replaced by President-elect Donald Trump on January 20.
Russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure have intensified since this spring.
Almost part of Ukraine’s production capacity has been damaged, causing normal blackouts across the country.
One of the largest missile attacks took place on November 17, when Russia introduced some 120 missiles and 90 drones.
rmt, msh/rm (AFP, Reuters)