Ukraine Under Mass Strikes

Several cities in Ukraine have been subjected to widespread missile and drone strikes overnight. The situation is particularly dire in Kyiv and Kharkiv, where both civilian and energy infrastructure have been damaged.

According to local authorities, numerous explosions were heard in the capital. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported that strikes in the Darnytskyi district hit a non-residential building and a kindergarten. The Kyiv City Military Administration (KCMA) also reported damage to a non-residential structure in the Desnyanskyi district as well as an apartment building in the Shevchenkivskyi district.

In Kharkiv, the strikes continued for several hours. Mayor Igor Terekhov stated that the city's energy infrastructure was targeted, resulting in serious damage. He warned that city authorities would be forced to make “harsh but unavoidable decisions.”

According to Terekhov, to avoid freezing the heating system, the heat transfer liquid needs to be removed from 820 residential buildings that receive heat from one of the city’s largest thermal power plants. The mayor noted that this step is extremely complex, especially in temperatures around minus 20 degrees Celsius, but the unprecedented assault on infrastructure leaves no alternative.

Explosions were also heard in Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro, the Odesa region, and other parts of the country. Local authorities continue to assess the scale of the damage incurred.