Russia launched what it described as a “massive” overnight missile and drone attack against nine Ukrainian cities, striking infrastructure and civilian areas as the war continues into its fifth year.
The overnight barrage began late Wednesday and continued into Thursday morning, with explosions reported across several Ukrainian regions, including Kyiv, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Poltava, Kryvyi Rih and Odesa. Ukrainian officials said the attacks damaged residential buildings and critical infrastructure.
Ukrainian authorities reported that at least one person was killed and several others were wounded. A 78-year-old woman was among those killed in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, according to officials.
Ukraine’s Air Force said Russia used a combination of ballistic, hypersonic and cruise missiles alongside hundreds of drones. Ukrainian defenses intercepted a significant number of the incoming weapons, but officials continue to warn that shortages of Western-supplied air-defense interceptors are leaving the country vulnerable to large-scale attacks.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said the strikes targeted military-related facilities, including industrial sites, oil refineries, logistics hubs and port infrastructure. Ukrainian officials, however, reported damage to civilian locations and essential services.
The latest assault comes amid an intensifying long-range campaign by both Russia and Ukraine. Kyiv has increasingly targeted military and industrial sites inside Russia with drones, while Moscow continues to use missile and drone barrages against Ukrainian cities and infrastructure.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy renewed calls for stronger international support for Ukraine’s air defenses, arguing that additional systems and ballistic-missile interceptors are urgently needed to protect civilians and critical infrastructure.
The scale of the latest attack underscores the continuing threat faced by Ukrainian cities far from the front lines, where repeated aerial strikes have damaged energy, transport and industrial infrastructure and added to the humanitarian toll of the war.
Swifteradio.com
