Officials reported that Ukraine’s air defenses engaged in a fierce battle against a Russian aerial attack on the capital, Kyiv, for five hours, with missiles and drones striking vital energy infrastructure. The attack, which occurred overnight, resulted in injuries to at least two people, with a kindergarten, a gas pipe, and approximately 20 vehicles suffering damage, according to the Kyiv Military Administration.
In western Ukraine, the air force disclosed that Russia launched three Kinzhal hypersonic ballistic missiles aimed at Starokostiantyniv in the Khmelnytskyi region on Thursday morning, suggesting the targets may have been sensitive sites. Long-range strikes have become a staple of Russia’s military strategy in Ukraine, frequently impacting civilian areas and contributing to the crippling of the energy sector, which has lost about 70% of its generation capacity as reported by the United Nations.
Amid the ongoing crisis, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was set to meet with President Joe Biden in Washington to discuss sustaining U.S. military aid to bolster air defense systems. Energy infrastructure was also affected in the Ivano-Frankivsk and Mykolaiv regions, leading to localized blackouts.
The overnight assault involved six missiles and 78 Shahed drones, with Ukrainian air defenses successfully intercepting four missiles and 66 drones. In the Odesa region, a missile strike resulted in the death of a 62-year-old woman, while the city of Zaporizhzhia reported at least 10 injuries, including that of a 14-year-old, alongside extensive damage to residential buildings.
Additionally, ordnance experts in the Sumy region successfully defused a 500-kilogram glide bomb that had landed without detonating near a bridge.