Two individuals lost their lives, and 13 others sustained injuries in Kyiv after Ukrainian authorities reported that Russian missiles and drones struck various locations in Ukraine overnight, impacting infrastructure and energy facilities.
The assault in Kyiv resulted in numerous fires and inflicted damage on residential structures, including a kindergarten, as per city officials.
Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko expressed, “These attacks once again targeted our civilian population and energy infrastructure.”
“Russia is currently making efforts to cause a humanitarian crisis in Ukraine as winter approaches,” she added.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha disclosed that Russian missiles and drones also aimed at the energy grid, railways, and residential areas in Dnipro, Kharkiv, and Sumy.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with ‘coalition of the willing’ countries in the U.K. and Mark Rutte, secretary general of NATO, welcomed recent U.S. sanctions on Russia as a way to draw them to the negotiating table.
Russia’s Defence Ministry stated in a Telegram release that the nighttime strikes were aimed at Ukraine’s military-industrial complex facilities and energy infrastructure structures supporting its operations.
The Defence Ministry of Russia further reported that its forces successfully brought down 121 Ukrainian drones overnight, with seven of them heading towards Moscow.
Zelenskyy urges for Western air defense systems
Significant plumes of smoke enveloped Kyiv on Saturday morning as firefighters hurried to extinguish fires throughout the city.
By midday, they managed to contain one fire in a 140,000-square-foot warehouse with the assistance of two helicopters and extinguished another blaze in a different building.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized the importance of Patriot air defense systems in safeguarding Ukrainian cities against continuous Russian assaults.
“Since the start of this year alone, Russia has launched approximately 770 ballistic missiles and over 50 ‘Kinzhal’ missiles towards Ukraine,” Zelenskyy conveyed on Telegram.
“It is due to such attacks that we emphasize the necessity of Patriot systems — to defend our cities against this horror. It is crucial for our allies possessing the relevant capabilities to implement our recent discussions,” he reiterated in an English message on X.
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