New Wave of Russian Missile and Drone Strikes Targets Ukrainian Regions

Russia unleashed a new wave of missile and drone attacks on several Ukrainian regions, resulting in at least four fatalities, according to Ukraine’s military. This assault follows a significant attack on Ukraine’s power grid the previous day.

In the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, two individuals were killed when a hotel was destroyed, as reported by regional officials on Tuesday. Additionally, two more people died in drone attacks on Zaporizhzhia, east of Kryvyi Rih.

The Kyiv region’s air defense systems were activated multiple times overnight to counter missiles and drones targeting the capital, according to the regional military administration via Telegram.

Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, stated on Tuesday morning that Ukrainian air defenses successfully intercepted about 15 drones and several missiles near Kyiv during the overnight attack.

“Everything that flew to the capital of Ukraine was destroyed,” Popko said on Telegram.

The Ukrainian Air Force reported shooting down five missiles and 60 drones launched by Russia during the overnight attack. In total, Russia launched 91 projectiles, including 10 missiles and 81 Iranian-designed attack drones, from various regions, as stated in a social media post.

On Monday, Russia launched over 200 missiles and drones, resulting in at least seven fatalities and significant damage to energy infrastructure. US President Joe Biden condemned the attack, stating, “I condemn, in the strongest possible terms, Russia’s continued war against Ukraine and its efforts to plunge the Ukrainian people into darkness.”

Russia’s Ministry of Defence claimed its strikes on Monday hit “all designated targets” in Ukraine’s critical energy infrastructure.

The full extent and impact of Tuesday’s attacks are not yet confirmed, but Ukraine’s air force reported the launch of several clusters of drones and the deployment of Tu-85 strategic bombers and MiG-31 supersonic interceptor aircraft from Russian airfields.

Several Russian military bloggers, including the pro-war collective known as Rybar, described the attacks as an “act of retaliation” for Ukraine’s incursion into Russia’s Kursk region.

The Kremlin had previously stated there would be a response to Ukraine’s action in Kursk. However, three weeks into the incursion, Kyiv claims further advances, while Russia maintains it is pushing back Ukrainian troops without success.

Reporting from Kyiv, Al Jazeera’s Alex Gatopoulos described Monday’s strikes as “the worst aerial assault Ukraine has had to endure in months, focusing on smashing its power and water grids.”

“The defenses have been on high alert now for more than 24 hours,” Gatopoulos added, noting the significant impact on Kyiv’s power sources. “There are parts in the capital still without power. We are seeing the effects here as the energy grid is trying to be repaired by Ukrainian crews.”

The Kremlin denies targeting civilians in the war that President Vladimir Putin launched against Ukraine with a full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Kryvyi Rih, Kyiv, and central and eastern regions of Ukraine were under air raid alerts for most of the night.

Serhiy Lisak, the governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region where Kryvyi Rih is located, reported on Telegram that two civilians may still be under the rubble of the hotel, and five were injured in the attack. Six shops, four high-rise buildings, and eight cars were also damaged.

In Zaporizhzhia, two people were killed and four injured overnight, according to Ivan Fedorov, governor of the Zaporizhia region, on Telegram.

“Such are the consequences of the overnight attack by Shaheds on Zaporizhia,” Fedorov said, referring to the Iranian-made kamikaze drones that Ukraine says Russia uses in its attacks.

UN nuclear agency chief Rafael Grossi arrived at the Kursk nuclear power plant, which Moscow claims has been repeatedly attacked by Ukrainian forces located just 40 km (25 miles) away.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief emphasized the importance of nuclear facility safety. “The safety and security of nuclear facilities must, under no circumstances, be endangered,” Grossi said.

Meanwhile, Russian Telegram channels linked to security services reported earlier on Tuesday that Ukrainian troops had attacked the border, although there was no immediate official confirmation of fighting there.

The governor of Russia’s Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, described the situation on the border with Ukraine as “difficult, but under control.”

“There is information that the enemy is trying to break through the border of the Belgorod region,” Gladkov wrote on Telegram. “Our military is carrying out planned work. Please remain calm and trust only official sources of information.”