At least six people were murdered and numerous areas of the war-torn country lost electricity on Thursday as a result of the heaviest Russian attacks on Ukraine in weeks.
While the battle for control of the strategically important city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine continued on, Kyiv’s forces shot down nearly half of the missiles fired by Russia over at least 10 districts.
The normally tranquil Lviv region in western Ukraine was hit by the fatal Russian barrage on Thursday, leaving Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, without heat, water, or electricity.
In an effort to terrify Ukrainians once more, the enemy launched 81 missiles, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Russia has been bombarding vital Ukrainian infrastructure with missiles and drones for months, affecting the supply of energy, heat, and water to millions of people.
The explosions in two sections of the Ukrainian capital left two people hurt, 15% of homes without power, and 40% without heating, according to Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kiev.
An attack left three parked cars on fire and numerous others damaged near a high-rise apartment building on Prospekt Peremogy, often known as Victory Prospect, in the west of Kyiv. Broken windows left a trail of glass on the ground.
Our windows offer views of that side. Igor Yezhov, a 60-year-old local who is originally from Russia and works as a vehicle salesman, claimed that there was a really loud crash.
– “Frightening” – “I was genuinely terrified, even though our building is a sturdy one made of reinforced concrete. However, it was terrifying.
It’s destiny. At seven in the morning, people go for work. Nobody anticipates such (strikes). You need to pay closer attention whenever there is an air raid siren.
While the governor of Ukraine’s eastern Dnipropetrovsk area claimed that a 34-year-old man had been killed, the governor of the country’s western Lviv region said that five people’s remains had been discovered in the ruins of their home after being hit by a missile.
The largest nuclear power plant in Europe, which is under Russian control and is located in Zaporizhzhia, was also unable to receive electricity as a result of the strikes, according to Ukraine’s nuclear energy operator.
The facility is presently running on diesel generators with a 10 day autonomy for the sixth time since it was taken over.
The countdown has begun. If it is impossible to renew the external power supply of the station during this time, an accident with radiation consequences for the whole world may occur,” Energoatom said.
There were also strikes reported on energy plants in several other parts of Ukraine, including Kharkiv in the northeast and the region of Odesa in the southwest.
In the Kharkiv region, located on the border with Russia, governor Oleg Synegubov said there had been 15 strikes targeting “critical infrastructure facilities”.
In the region’s main city of Kharkiv, mayor Igor Terekhov said the city had been left entirely without mains power, water and heating on Thursday morning and was using generators.
– Bakhmut may fall –
In Odesa region, governor Maksym Marchenko said “missiles hit the energy infrastructure of the region as well as damaged residential buildings” following a “massive missile strike”.
“Fortunately, there were no casualties,” he said, adding that “power supply restrictions” were in place.
The wave of strikes comes after Russia reported making gains in the battle for the industrial city of Bakhmut, which has been the focus of months of fierce combat.
Russia’s Wagner mercenary group, which has spearheaded the attack on Bakhmut, claimed on Wednesday to have captured the eastern part of the city.
Russia is increasing its personnel and force levels, and what they lack in quality, they attempt to make up for in quantity, said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg to reporters on the fringes of a meeting of EU defense ministers on Wednesday in Stockholm.
Despite the fact that “this does not necessarily reflect any turning point of the battle,” the commander of the US-led military alliance stated that “we cannot rule out” that Bakhmut may ultimately fall in the upcoming days.
Russian gains in eastern Ukraine may continue as a result of Bakhmut’s fall, Ukrainian officials have warned.
AFP