A major overnight Russian attack on Ukraine killed seven people and injured dozens, with Moscow launching more than 660 drones and missiles in a volley that targeted the city of Dnipro in southeastern Ukraine and hit several other regions.
A large section of an apartment building in Dnipro collapsed after being hit during the attack. Four bodies were recovered from the rubble, regional governor Oleksandr Hanzha said.
The site was hit again in a daytime attack, authorities said, as rescue teams worked at the site. The second attack killed one person and injured seven.
Continues after advertising
Drones against Ukraine
Moscow has been launching small barrages of dozens of drones every night against Ukraine, interspersing them with occasional large-scale attacks using hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles.
Dense columns of black smoke could be seen rising into the sky on Saturday morning as local media warned city residents about worsening air quality.
A Reuters reporter saw a Russian drone being destroyed in the sky over the ruined apartment building as rescue teams worked through the rubble. In total, more than 30 people in the city were injured, authorities said.
Distressed residents
“Russia is deliberately prolonging terror against our people by continuing to attack critical infrastructure and residential buildings,”’ said Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko.
In the destroyed apartment block in Dnipro, which had a population of nearly a million before the war and had suffered many lethal bombings over the past four years, residents were overcome with sadness and anger.
“May their children sleep in their warm beds in Russia and may everything be fine for them. May they watch as Russia ‘frees’ us from our apartments and houses,”‘ said Aliona Katrushova, 37, who lives in the building opposite.
Continues after advertising
She watched in her bathrobe as survivors were pulled from the rubble. Saturday is her husband, Oleh’s birthday. “It’s like getting a second life,” he said after surviving the attack, although the couple’s apartment was damaged.
In the northern region of Chernihiv, missile and drone strikes killed two people and injured seven others, the local governor said. “Each attack like this should remind our partners that the situation demands immediate and firm action, as well as a rapid reinforcement of our air defenses,” said President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
Drone fragments damaged an electricity pole and a residential outbuilding in Romania, a NATO member country that borders Ukraine, local authorities said, although there were no casualties.
Continues after advertising
Ukraine has recently intensified its drone attacks on Russian territory. Authorities in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg reported on Saturday that a Ukrainian drone crashed into a residential building, causing minor injuries.
Ukrainian Expertise
The Ukrainian leader visited Azerbaijan on Saturday to sign cooperation agreements in the areas of defense and energy.
Kiev seeks to strengthen its diplomatic and security alliances, taking advantage of its wartime experience in combating major airstrikes, in particular its experience in shooting down hundreds of drones with low-cost methods.
Continues after advertising
Zelenskiy published a photo of himself meeting Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and said he also met with a Ukrainian military team “who are sharing Ukraine’s experience in protecting airspace.”
Azerbaijan has a long border with Iran, with which it maintains tense relations. Azerbaijan has also fought several wars with its other neighbor, Armenia, since 1991.
Since the US and Israel attacked Iran earlier this year, triggering a war in the Middle East, Kiev has struggled to build security cooperation with Middle Eastern nations concerned about Iranian drone and missile bombings.
Continues after advertising
The Russian attack carried out on Saturday night used 619 drones and 47 missiles, the Ukrainian Air Force said in a statement on Telegram, adding that it shot down 580 drones and 30 missiles.
The Russian Defense Ministry said it struck military, industrial and energy targets in Ukraine overnight. He did not comment on the attack on the residential building in Dnipro.
