Russia hits Ukraine with barrage of drones, missiles, kills 3, Kyiv says

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By Olena Harmash

KYIV (Reuters) -Russia unleashed a major drone and missile attack on Ukraine overnight, killing three people, injuring dozens more, and damaging infrastructure and residential buildings, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Saturday.

Despite diplomatic efforts to find ways to end the war that began when Russia invaded in February 2022, the fighting has intensified in recent months.

In a statement on the Telegram app, Zelenskiy said Russia had launched around 580 drones and 40 missiles targeting infrastructure, civilian manufacturing companies and residential areas in different parts of the country.

Air defences shot down 552 of the drones and 31 missiles, Ukraine’s air force said.

RUSSIA IS ‘TERRORISING’ CIVILIANS, SAYS ZELENSKIY

“All night, Ukraine was under a massive attack by Russia,” Zelenskiy said. “Every such strike is not a military necessity but a deliberate strategy by Russia to terrorise civilians and destroy our infrastructure.”

Russia denies targeting Ukrainian civilians.

In the central city of Dnipro, a missile with a cluster munition hit a residential apartment building, Zelenskiy said.

One person was killed, and at least 26 people were injured in Dnipro, regional officials said. 

Two people were also killed in the Chernihiv region in the north and the Khmelnytskyi region in the west of the country, regional officials said.

Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield reports.

“I could hear the ‘Shahed’ (drone) getting closer and closer. I understood it was flying towards us. My child and I were very frightened,” Yulia Chystokletova, a resident of Kyiv, told Reuters.

“It should not be happening in the 21st century. We are all people. Agree… sit down at the negotiating table.”

Kyiv faces increasing pressure in eastern Ukraine, where Russian troops are keeping up their grinding advance, devastating villages and towns and claiming new territory.

BOTH SIDES STEPPING UP DRONE ATTACKS

To hit Ukrainian cities far from the frontline, Russia appears to have changed its tactics and now launches swarms of hundreds of drones in one strike, compared with dozens early in the war.

Ukraine typically responds with drone strikes of its own, aiming to reach deeper into the Russian territory, hitting refineries, fuel depots, and logistics hubs.

Ukraine hit two Russian oil refineries in the Saratov and Samara regions in attacks overnight, causing explosions and fires, the Ukrainian General Staff said.

“Regarding refineries: we have drones, we know how to produce them. It all depends on the number of drones we use per day,” Zelenskiy told reporters.

“As soon as the number of drones is comparable to that of the Russians, they will feel it in terms of fuel shortages and the number of queues at petrol stations.”

Russia’s Defence Ministry said its forces had successfully carried out strikes with high-precision weapons on Ukrainian military-industrial facilities overnight.

Polish and allied aircraft were also deployed early on Saturday to ensure the safety of Polish airspace after some of Russia’s airstrikes targeted western Ukraine near the border with NATO member Poland, the Polish military command said.

(Additional reporting by Yuri Kovalenko; Editing by Kirsten Donovan, Hugh Lawson and Gareth Jones)