Russia targets cities and infrastructure in largest air attack since war began, Ukraine says

By Svitlana Vlasova, Ivana Kottasová, Daria Tarasova and Christian Edwards.
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Russia launched a “massive” missile and drone attack aimed at energy infrastructure across Ukraine overnight into Monday, marking the biggest air attack since the war began, Ukrainian officials said.

The attack, which killed at least five people and caused power outages in several cities, marks Russia’s “most massive air attack” in more than two-and-a-half years of conflict, according to Ukrainian Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk.

The nationwide strikes used “more than 100 missiles of various types and around 100 Shahed drones,” Ukrainian President Volodmyr Zelensky said. Ukraine shot down 102 of the missiles and 99 attack drones, Oleshchuk said.


Ukraine’s air force said it detected dozens of missiles and drones targeting almost all regions of the country, from the frontline eastern regions of Kharkiv and Dnipro to the southern port city of Odesa, as well as the capital, Kyiv.

Zelensky also said that in some places, Russia “attacked civilian targets with cluster munitions.”

“We continue to eliminate the consequences at the facilities themselves, repair and de-mine,” Zelensky said in a statement after his meeting with Oleshchuk and other top military officials on Monday. He added that military engineers, or sappers, are working to repair power facilities.

“Russian terrorists have once again targeted energy infrastructure,” Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal wrote on Telegram earlier on Monday. At least 15 regions were targeted by a combination of drones, cruise missiles and hypersonic Kinzhal missiles, he said.

Ukraine’s national energy company, Ukrenergo, has been forced to implement emergency power cuts to stabilize the system, Shmyhal said. Power outages have been recorded in several cities, including Kyiv and Dnipro, according to Serhii Kovalenko, chief executive of the Yasno energy company.

Ukraine had been bracing for a major Russian attack for weeks, in response to Kyiv’s shock incursion into the border region of Kursk – the first foreign invasion of Russia since World War II. Ahead of Ukraine’s Independence Day on Saturday, the US Embassy in Kyiv had warned of an increased risk of Russian drone and missile attacks.

The overnight assault came hours after Ukraine’s foreign ministry called on Belarus to withdraw what it described as a “significant” buildup of Belarusian forces and equipment at their shared border. Kyiv also reported that former Wagner mercenaries were among the troops at the border and urged Minsk “not to make tragic mistakes for their country under Moscow’s pressure.”


People take shelter in the Tealtralna metro station in Kyiv, Ukraine, August 26, 2024.
Throughout the war, Russia has repeatedly targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, attempting to plunge its citizens into darkness and use freezing winter temperatures as a weapon of war. After Monday’s attack, Ukraine’s Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko said “the energy sector is in the crosshairs” and the extent of the damage was being investigated.

Later Monday, Russia’s Defense Ministry confirmed it had launched “a massive strike with long-range precision air and sea-based weapons” against Ukraine’s power grid and rail lines, which it said disrupted the transport of weapons and ammunition to the frontlines. “All designated targets were hit,” the ministry said.

Deaths have been reported in the Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Volyn, Zhytomyr and Kharkiv regions, according to Ukrainian authorities. At least 30 people were injured in the attack, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said, including five people in a strike on an industrial facility in the central Poltava region.

CNN teams in Kyiv and Dnipro heard several explosions overnight.

In Kyiv, the head of the city military administration said air defenses were working in the region and the outskirts of the capital and advised people to stay in shelters. In Kharkiv, emergency services were working at an undisclosed number of sites targeted in the attacks, according to its regional military head.


British safety adviser for Reuters killed in Russian strike on Ukraine hotel
Although Kyiv’s Western allies have provided Ukraine with vast amounts of military equipment, they have placed strict conditions on how this can be used. Fearing Russian escalation, Western countries have prohibited Ukraine from using the weapons it has been given to strike missile and drone launch sites deep inside Russia, meaning Kyiv has to rely mostly on its air defenses to stem Moscow’s attacks.

Following Monday’s strikes, Ukrainian officials once again asked their allies to allow them to strike deeper into Russia.

“Every leader, every one of our partners, knows the decisive actions required to end this war justly. Ukraine cannot be constrained in its long-range capabilities when the terrorists face no such limitations,” Zelensky said.

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry, Dmytro Kuleba, also made two requests of Kyiv’s allies: “First, affirming Ukraine’s long-range strikes on all legitimate military targets on Russian territory. Second, agreeing to use partners’ air defense capabilities to shoot down missiles and drones close to their airspace.”

West of Ukraine, Poland’s military said it is searching for what is believed to be a drone that likely entered its territory during Russia’s overnight assault, according to Polish state media.

The Polish armed forces were ready for a possible shooting down of this object, which was not a rocket, that crossed the border on Monday morning but weather conditions did not allow for visual identification, a spokesperson for the Polish army’s operational command Jacek Goryszewski said Monday. He added that no explosions were recorded.

The widespread aerial assault comes two days after a Russian strike on a hotel in the Donetsk region killed a British safety adviser and wounded two journalists.

Ryan Evans, a former soldier, had been working with Reuters since 2022 and advised its journalists on safety around the world including in Ukraine, Israel and at the Paris Olympics, the news agency said.

Residents without power
When Kyiv experiences blackouts, a constant, deep roar can be heard over the city – the sound of generators humming in front of shops, as business owners try to minimize the impact of the latest attack.

Maksym Holubchenko a 25-year old barista in Kyiv, was still at home when Russia launched the early-morning barrage, but he said he went to work anyway.

“This is the reality for us, it’s been nearly three years. Everyone is used to it. Just a normal day, well… it’s not normal – this shouldn’t be happening in the 21st century,” he told CNN.

While the generator keeps the cafe running, it adds extra cost and work. Holubchenko said at the moment, power cuts like the one on Monday happen roughly once a month.

“You need to change oil, the barista has to start it, service it, when we come to work we just want to make coffee and work with people but have to get busy with other things,” he said. With the generator needing some 3.5 liters of fuel every hour, fuel canisters are lined up at the back of the cafe, ready to top it up.

Maksym Holubchenko makes coffee at a Kyiv cafe that was running on a generator on Monday.
Lights were out in many parts of Kyiv on Monday morning, with residents saying they lost power after hearing several loud explosions.

“There is nowhere to go and to hide,” Katerina, 35, told CNN by phone on Monday.


Russian forces close in on key Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk. But fleeing is hard – even for those who can afford it
She had recently left the city with her child to avoid shelling and is now living without power or water on the capital’s outskirts.

“The explosions were so powerful that the house was shaking and the windows were shaking,” she said. “After four or five explosions, my husband and I decided to wake up the baby and go outside. Since the house was not new and there was no shelter or cellar to hide in, it was not safe to stay inside, because of the shrapnel from the windows.”

Anna, who lives on the right bank of Kyiv, woke up to an air-raid alarm followed by explosions.

“The bulk of the missiles were shot down in the region, but even from there I could hear the sounds of explosions and the work of the air defense. My friends from other parts of the city wrote that their electricity and water were cut off,” she said.

In Kyiv metro station, which has been used throughout the war as an air-raid shelter, residents told CNN how they had woken in fear to the sound of sirens.

“I woke up from explosions and immediately came to the subway,” Dmytro, 18, told CNN. “It was scary to hear the sound of explosions. Kyiv hasn’t been shelled for a long period.”

Russia says it shot down drones
The latest Russian bombardment also comes as Ukrainian forces occupy a pocket of Russian territory in the border region of Kursk and as Kyiv carries out its own aerial attacks on targets deep inside Russia.

On Monday, Russia said its air defenses had destroyed 20 drones launched from Ukraine overnight, including nine over the Saratov region, three over Kursk and two each over the Belgorod, Bryansk and Tula regions.

On Sunday, Belgorod’s governor said five civilians were killed and 12 others wounded in shelling.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday said his forces had advanced up to 3 kilometers (nearly 2 miles) in Kursk and taken control of two more settlements.

Meanwhile, in Ukraine, Russian ground forces are inching toward the key eastern city of Pokrovsk, which could become the next major battleground of the war.

Ukrainian emergency services conduct a search and rescue operation among the rubble at the site where a hotel was hit by a missile in Kramatorsk, Donetsk region, on August 24, 2024.

Pokrovsk is a strategic target for Moscow and Russian President Vladimir Putin has made it clear that his goal is to seize all of the eastern Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.

Pokrovsk sits on a key supply road that connects it with other military hubs and forms the backbone of Ukrainian defenses in the part of Donetsk that is still under Kyiv’s control.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/26/europe/ukraine-russia-air-attacks-intl-hnk/index.html

Deaths have been reported in the Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Volyn, Zhytomyr and Kharkiv regions, according to Ukrainian authorities. At least 30 people were injured in the attack, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said, including five people in a strike on an industrial facility in the central Poltava region.
Russian forces close in on key Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk. But fleeing is hard – even for those who can afford it

Now that US is distracted by the Gaza-Isreal war, Ukraine is being killed slowly by Russia.
All these wars should please stop for the sake of humanity.

Same pounding since the last 2 yrs. There's nothing new here. Lol

Hopefully Putin can pound Russia's economy back to life!

How I wish that isreali pm, Netanyahu is Ukrainian President...I trust that one..he has no mercy or fear..

If u strike his restaurant, he will strike back Ur restaurant monster the number of casualty, he doesn't care, so long as u strike him first..

If u strike his hospital he reciprocates the strike back...zelensky is too diplomatic and following all the war rules...he is letting Putin kill his people while at he targets only military installations or refinery to cut Russian revenue from oil...

Putin is lucky

bigpicture001:
How I wish that isreali pm, Netanyahu is Ukrainian President...I trust that one..he has no mercy or fear..

If u strike his restaurant, he will strike back Ur restaurant monster the number of casualty, he doesn't care, so long as u strike him first..

If u strike his hospital he reciprocates the strike back...zelensky is too diplomatic and following all the war rules...he is letting Putin kill his people while at he targets only military installations or refinery to cut Russian revenue from oil...

Putin is lucky

So if Mr Netanyahu is the President of Ukraine, he will be crazy enough to attack Russia that has supersonic nukes? Or you think Russia is a small army of Hamas fighters? Smh.

Not even Trump will be the President of Ukraine and now want to commit such a suicide. Russia is deliberately killing Ukraine in a slow and painful death.

If you know Russia, you will know that they are deliberately killing Ukraine slowly unlike Mr Benjamin Netanyahu who rushed and today thrown everything including the kitchen sink into a war it is yet to win while Isreal economy keeps grinding to a halt.

The economy of Russia keeps growing in the middle of war and making it obvious that it's their own interest to keep the war long and longer! Isreal economy keeps sinking and losing money.

This war no dey finsh?.
When will the winner emerge

Ring the bell

Putin is a failure as long as this war is concerned. The only thing he knows is to attack power stations and civilians

Stop talking trash and shut up that your toilet mouth

For your mind Israel go get mind fight Russia? People in ukraine are Jews ,make fake foolish Israel go try fight russian make them collect back to back

Mumu man

Seefinish:
Putin is a failure as long as this war is concerned. The only thing he knows is to attack power stations and civilians

Mumu where should he first attack ? Your family house ? ..monkey

Russia vs over 30 NATO allies, I think outing know what he's doing.


He's slowly draining the resources of these NATO countries, because if you check the equipments and funds pledged to Ukraine already, to prosecute this war, it would be nesting that of WW2.


Imagine this same amount of money was pledged into bettering the lives of the people

Zelensky should have chosen peace instead of war, instead he wanted to prove a point..because the united states was backing them??

Go and check, after the world war 2 ended, no nation the united states supported in times of war have ever come out victorious, zelensky should have learnt from that

High time they both talk it out and negotiate

Botragelad:
Same pounding since the last 2 yrs. There's nothing new here. Lol

Hopefully Putin can pound Russia's economy back to life!

I'm not a fan of Putin though but I don't think Russia economy had issues recently. It has even been going stronger.

Give peace a chance. World leaders and power. Sometimes I wonder why God allow men to invent all this dangerous weapons

Continue killing yourselves!

Lamentations continue, Russia has a right to defend itself from the terrorists

PUTIN is just killing the NATO small small

I still no knw who give Ukraine liver chop oh..... Simple negotiations would have stopped this war.....

Russia will make a mincemeat of Ukraine...they have lost over 35% of this land forever to Russia

I pity them

Gooood

Atarakpa:
Give peace a chance. World leaders and power. Sometimes I wonder why God allow men to invent all this dangerous weapons

if not for weapons,dont u think Islamic jihidist would have conquered d world?av u seen what they have been doing with their knives all over d world?only on Sunday two policemen were stoned to death by the Shiite group in Nigeria,then imagine what they would have done if d security agencies are armless?

If not for NATO pumping Ukraine and Russia holding back ,Ukraine would have been worse than Gaza .

Kingri:
Stop talking trash and shut up that your toilet mouth

For your mind Israel go get mind fight Russia? People in ukraine are Jews ,make fake foolish Israel go try fight russian make them collect back to back

Mumu man

Russia is ahead of them all
They dont knw what russia is capable of

bigpicture001:
How I wish that isreali pm, Netanyahu is Ukrainian President...I trust that one..he has no mercy or fear..

If u strike his restaurant, he will strike back Ur restaurant monster the number of casualty, he doesn't care, so long as u strike him first..

If u strike his hospital he reciprocates the strike back...zelensky is too diplomatic and following all the war rules...he is letting Putin kill his people while at he targets only military installations or refinery to cut Russian revenue from oil...

Putin is lucky

you must be a joke to compare Hamas power with Russia power .

Trouble

bigpicture001:
How I wish that isreali pm, Netanyahu is Ukrainian President...I trust that one..he has no mercy or fear..

If u strike his restaurant, he will strike back Ur restaurant monster the number of casualty, he doesn't care, so long as u strike him first..

If u strike his hospital he reciprocates the strike back...zelensky is too diplomatic and following all the war rules...he is letting Putin kill his people while at he targets only military installations or refinery to cut Russian revenue from oil...

Putin is lucky

Isreal only target soft spot like Palestinian , even our weak military formation can pull down Palestine no capping. Isreal should just continue to face that Palestine jeje with the support they get from America.
If isreal try send 1 missiles to Russia by mistake I wont lie to u d following day expect isreal to go down. Is isreal up to 2m people that they want to sacrifice all their citizen to quiet looking but wicked Putin?
When last did you hear any Arab spring war in Syria? D Russia military / government re loyal to the government of Syria reason why the president was d only one his own citizens couldn't conquer because Russia of backing .
Besides , Russia is the first country to produce a missile that defy air service defense equipment used for bringing down drone and missile strikes.

YOUNG MEN DIE IN OLD MEN'S WAR.

SAY NO TO WAR!!!!!

Khd95:
Russia vs over 30 NATO allies, I think outing know what he's doing.


He's slowly draining the resources of these NATO countries, because if you check the equipments and funds pledged to Ukraine already, to prosecute this war, it would be nesting that of WW2.


Imagine this same amount of money was pledged into bettering the lives of the people

Zelensky should have chosen peace instead of war, instead he wanted to prove a point..because the united states was backing them??

Go and check, after the world war 2 ended, no nation the united states supported in times of war have ever come out victorious, zelensky should have learnt from that

So in your mind , Putin has more resources than all NATO members combined that he can drain their resources abi ?

Dey play...

Risingblue008:


Russia is ahead of them all
They dont knw what russia is capable of

Just leave dem
They have forgotten that Putin has learnt his lesson since that war they lost to Osama bin led Afghanistan troupe backed by American. The guy is a master strategist. he just waited for days behaving as though hes deaf and dumb from Ukraine attacks so he can make the clownish president of Ukraine to have a fun fill day and jubilate at d same time so that he can impress his masters who finances the war
Zelensky think sey na Hollywood or Nollywood dem shoot

Ukraine can never win this war.
Money and equipment donated to Ukraine by NATO and its allies is already over $200 BN.
NATO soldiers in Ukraine has died in their thousands, not to mention Ukrainian soldiers That are being wasted.
Yes, Russian has also suffered great loss to.
Russia is fighting NATO, it’s expected.
Ukraine has did the job the westerners needed it for, to sanction Russia.
Sadly sanctions has failed.
It’s a sad war and I empathize with Ukrainian people because they’re fighting and dying in another man’s war.