Massive Russian strikes across Ukraine trigger blackouts and kill at least five people

CNN: Russia launched its largest aerial attack on Ukraine in months, hitting energy infrastructure across the country, killing at least five people and causing widespread damage.

Strikes were reported in several major cities, from Odesa in the south, Dnipro in the east to Rivne in the west. In the capital Kyiv, which has seen near-daily strikes since the start of September, residents were forced to shelter in the metro network.

Two people were killed in a drone strike in the Mykolaiv region, while six others including two children were injured. A further two were killed in Odesa in an attack which also injured a 17-year-old boy, and a woman was killed in her car in Lviv region, the governor said.

The last comparable attack happened on August 28, when Russia launched 127 missiles and 109 attack drones at Ukraine, the Ukrainian Air Force said.

The overnight strikes triggered blackouts in several regions, including Odesa where heating, water and electricity supplies have been cut and hospitals are running on power from generators.

Ukrainian energy company DTEK said its thermal power plants were attacked and equipment was “severely damaged.”

The war - now nearing its third year - has reached a critical point for Ukraine, with Russia making gains across the frontlines and Donald Trump retaking the White House, which could mean the end to vital US support.

Ukraine’s energy supplies have been repeatedly targeted by Russian attacks since its full-scale invasion in February 2022, causing rolling blackouts. Bombardments have intensified in recent months, leaving the country in a precarious position as the war grinds into its third winter.

“This is war criminal Putin’s true response to all those who called and visited him recently. We need peace through strength, not appeasement,” Foreign Minister Andrii Sibyha wrote on X.

Sibyha was likely referencing Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s recent phone call with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, which lasted an hour and was a rare high-level call between a western leader and Putin, who has been isolated by his invasion of Ukraine.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said approximately 120 missiles and 90 drones were launched overnight in the Russian attack. Ukraine’s defense forces destroyed over 140 aerial targets, he added.

All parts of Ukaine have been targeted, including the western regions, he said.

“The enemy’s target was our energy infrastructure across Ukraine. Unfortunately, some facilities sustained damage from direct hits and falling debris,” Zelensky said Sunday morning.

The Ukrainian leader added that some areas remain without power, which authorities are working to restore.

In a post on X later on Sunday, Zelensky stressed that “Russian terrorists are once again trying to intimidate us with cold and blackouts, repeating their actions and trying to get results from them.”

The Russian Ministry of Defense acknowledged the attack in a statement on Telegram Sunday, saying that Russia launched a “massive” strike with “high-precision long-range air and sea-based weapons and strike drones” targeting critical energy infrastructure.

Germany’s Scholz on Sunday defended his phone call with the Russian leader. Speaking to reporters, the chancellor described the call as “important” and “very detailed,” although he noted that “little has changed in the Russian President’s views of the war - and that’s not good news.”

He said that it would not be good if a US administration was in regular contact with Putin while no European leader was, referencing Donald Trump’s imminent return to the White House.

The attack overnight comes as Russia is making gains at key spots along the frontlines of eastern and southeastern Ukraine, moving closer to key hubs like the city of Kurakhove.

Russia claimed Saturday it captured two more eastern settlements in the Donetsk region, although there was no confirmation from Ukraine. At the same time, Moscow is preparing to launch a counteroffensive in the southern Russian region of Kursk, the site of Kyiv’s only major military success this year.