KYIV: In the latest series of overnight attacks by Russia on military and energy infrastructure in Ukraine killed two persons while frontline shelling resulted in another casualty, authorities reported on Tuesday.
Moscow’s army claimed to have downed 21 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory and Crimea using its air defense. Kyiv, in response, intensified cross-border aerial attacks, with Ukraine stating that 20 of its attack drones managed to bypass the air defense system.
According to Ukrainian officials, Russian forces launched two missiles and 35 attack drones across Ukraine. The air force statement revealed that 20 of these unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) successfully evaded air defense systems. The drones were directed towards frontline territories, aiming to hit fuel and energy infrastructure, as well as civilian and military facilities near the front line and the state border with Russia.
Urgent calls have been made by Kyiv for Western allies to enhance Ukraine’s air defense capabilities, emphasizing the need to gain control of the country’s airspace. The air force claimed that the defensive system, primarily in the eastern and southern regions, successfully intercepted 15 of the drones.
The barrage resulted in damages to civilian infrastructure in Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kharkiv, where two people were reported wounded. Ukrenergo, a Ukrainian energy provider, confirmed an attack on one of its substations in a central region.
In the eastern Donetsk region, prosecutors reported that a Russian S-300 missile attack claimed one life and injured another. Moreover, a woman was killed by Russian shelling in the frontline town of Avdiivka, according to the regional governor.
In Kherson, claimed by the Kremlin in 2022 along with the Donetsk region, one man lost his life, and his wife was wounded due to Russian shelling. In the southern Mykolaiv region, a downed Russian drone caused injuries to one man.
Responding to the drone attacks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Russia had fired around 330 missiles and approximately 600 attack UAVs on Ukraine in January alone.
