Russia has conducted a series of attacks on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, for the sixth consecutive day, resulting in at least 12 fatalities across the region. The assault, which lasted for 12 hours, occurred amid a noticeable stagnation in Russian advancements on the battlefield.
In retaliation, Ukraine launched drone strikes targeting Russian installations, successfully hitting an oil port. The bombardment of Kyiv persisted throughout the night into Tuesday, local time, with officials reporting that the latest aerial attacks were deliberately aimed at terrorizing civilians.
This ongoing series of airstrikes represents an unprecedented escalation, marking the first time since the onset of the full-scale invasion over four and a half years ago that Russian forces have maintained such a prolonged assault on the capital.
Ukrainian authorities have indicated that these relentless attacks are intended to demoralize the civilian population by disrupting their daily lives. The recent strikes involved a combination of cruise and ballistic missiles, jet-powered drones, glide bombs, and artillery barrages, impacting Kyiv alongside eight additional regions.
In total, more than a dozen individuals sustained injuries, including three children, coinciding with the return of millions of Ukrainian schoolchildren to school for the new academic year.
According to EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, Russia’s military is currently struggling to achieve success on the front lines and is resorting to air strikes to intimidate Ukraine’s Western allies. “Russia’s war is becoming increasingly brutal and destructive, yet it is regrettably no closer to a resolution,” she stated during a meeting of EU defense ministers in Ireland. “The Russian military is stymied on the ground, which is why they are resorting to indiscriminate attacks on civilians from the air.”
The latest assault targeted civilian infrastructure and residential areas in various districts of Kyiv, leading to the deaths of eight individuals in the city and four others in nearby areas. Among those killed in Kyiv were six employees of the state-owned railway company Ukrzaliznytsia, as confirmed by company Chairman Oleksandr Pertsovskyi via social media.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy indicated that the deceased included an Indian national, and nearly 350 emergency responders were dispatched to assist in the aftermath of the attacks.
The Russian Defense Ministry claimed responsibility for a “massive strike” utilizing “precision-guided munitions” and long-range drones, targeting facilities involved in the production and storage of weaponry as well as military infrastructure.
Ukraine’s air force reported that the assault commenced at 6 PM local time on Monday, employing ballistic, cruise, and anti-radar missiles, along with 218 drones and decoys. Approximately one-third of the drones were jet-powered, making them considerably more challenging to intercept compared to their propeller-driven counterparts.
The primary targets of the Russian military included areas in Kyiv and the southern region of Odesa, as stated by the air force. The attack on Odesa resulted in damage to civilian infrastructure and left one person injured, according to regional head Oleh Kiper.
Two residential buildings were damaged, and a fire erupted at a textile factory during the assault. Additionally, Russian forces targeted the Orlivka international ferry crossing on the Romanian border.
Furthermore, shelling occurred in the northern Zhytomyr region, igniting fires at an industrial site and a warehouse, as reported by Ukraine’s Emergency Service. In the capital, emergency teams worked diligently to clear debris from damaged apartment complexes and rescue trapped residents.
Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that its air defenses had intercepted 516 Ukrainian drones over 18 Russian regions, including the illegally annexed Crimean Peninsula and the Black Sea. In the Leningrad region, one of these drone attacks led to a fire at the port of Ust-Luga, Governor Alexander Drozdenko revealed, as Ukraine intensified its efforts to disrupt Russia’s vital oil sector.
Ust-Luga stands as one of Russia’s major oil and gas export terminals, located over 800 kilometers from Ukraine, and has been frequently targeted by Ukrainian drone strikes this year.
Additionally, the conflict in Ukraine was a topic of discussion at a recent summit involving the leaders of China, Russia, and India. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi communicated to Russian President Vladimir Putin that India supports initiatives aimed at concluding the conflict. “We must transition from an endless war to a resolution, to the cessation of hostilities,” Modi asserted, emphasizing the importance of this outcome for all of humanity.
