Russia-Ukraine War Live: Kievans Urged to Take Cover Late Night Drone Attack Targets Infrastructure | Ukraine

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Explosions were heard in Kyiv

Residents of Ukraine’s capital Kyiv were urged to head for air raid shelters early Friday as sirens sounded across the city, a day after Russia carried out its biggest air assault since the war began in February, Reuters reported.

Shortly after 2:00 a.m., the Kyiv city government issued an alert on its messaging app Telegram channel about air raid sirens and called on residents to head to shelters. A Reuters witness 20 km (12 miles) south of Kyiv heard several explosions and the sound of anti-aircraft fire.

Olekskiy Kuleba, the governor of the Kyiv region, said on Telegram that a “drone attack” was underway. A few hours later, he said, the attack targeted infrastructure and that there were no casualties.

Kuleba wrote on Telegram: “Night attack with drones. Russia once again targeted our infrastructure facilities. Air defense forces repelled the drones. Previously, there are no visits. Emergency services are working at the crash site.”

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Sean Walker

Here’s the full story on Thursday’s Russian missile barrage:

Russia launched a major round of missile attacks across Ukraine on Thursday morning, as Moscow rejected Ukraine’s peace plan and continued its attacks on the country’s infrastructure.

Targets from Lviv in the west to Kharkiv in the east came under fire on Thursday morning. Ukraine’s military command said Russia launched 69 missiles from land, sea and air, 54 of which it said were shot down by Ukrainian air defenses.

Ukraine’s Defense Ministry wrote on Twitter that the strikes constituted “one of the largest missile strikes since the beginning of the massive invasion”.

European gas prices fall to the level of pre-war Ukrainian Jasper Jolly

European gas prices have fallen to a level last seen before Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February, after warm weather across the continent eased concerns about shortages.

The European gas futures contract for the following month fell to 76.78 euros per megawatt-hour on Wednesday, its lowest level in 10 months, before closing higher at 83.70 euros, according to Refinitiv, a data company.

The invasion sent global energy markets into turmoil and forced European countries, including industrial powerhouse Germany, to look for alternative suppliers to those funding the Kremlin. Europe continued to rely on Russian gas even after the 2014 annexation of Crimea and support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, in a video address on Thursday night, that air commands in central, southern, eastern and western Ukraine had repelled 54 Russian missiles and 11 drones on Thursday.

Zelensky admitted that most regions are experiencing power outages. Zelensky said areas where power loss was “particularly difficult” include the capital Kyiv, Odessa and Kherson in the south and surrounding areas, and the area around Lviv near the western border with Poland.

“But this is nothing compared to what would have happened without our heroic anti-aircraft guns and air defense,” he said.

Reuters footage on Thursday showed emergency workers searching through the charred wreckage of homes in Kyiv, destroyed by an explosion, and smoke trails from missiles in the sky. Officials had previously said more than 120 rockets were fired during Thursday’s attack.

The Defense Ministry said in a statement that more than 18 residential buildings and 10 basic infrastructure facilities were destroyed in the recent attacks.

Britain sends metal detectors and bomb disposal kits to Ukraine

Britain said on Friday it had provided Ukraine with more than 1,000 metal detectors and 100 bomb disposal kits to help clear minefields, in its latest instance of military support.

“Russia’s use of landmines and the targeting of civilian infrastructure underscores the appalling cruelty of Putin’s invasion,” British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said in a statement.

“This latest package of British support will help Ukraine safely clear land and buildings while reclaiming its rightful territory.”

The Defense Ministry said the metal detectors, made by German company Fallon, can help troops clear safe passages on roads and trails by helping to remove explosive hazards, while groups can defuse unexploded bombs.

President Maia Sandu, who was elected in 2020 on a pro-European and anti-corruption platform, expressed hope on Thursday that crisis-hit Moldova would join the European Union before 2030.

“My wishes are very ambitious,” Sandu said in remarks carried by the public TV channel Moldova 1. “I think we should become a member of the European Union by the end of this decade.”

The EU accepted Moldova as a candidate for membership in June, when it extended the same status to neighboring Ukraine. It was a diplomatic victory for Sandhu, whose country is one of the poorest in Europe and faces many economic struggles.

Trees covered in hoarfrost in downtown Chişinău, Moldova, December 20, 2022. Photo: Dumitru Duru/EPA

Moldova is struggling to wean itself off Russian gas while dealing with power outages caused in part by Moscow’s attacks on energy infrastructure in neighboring Ukraine. It also faces protests over high inflation.

In a sign of progress on Wednesday, Moldovan state utility company Energocom announced a deal to supply enough nuclear electricity to Romania to make up for 80% of the expected shortfall in January 2023.

Romanian energy producers have been given permission to sell electricity to Moldova at 450 lei per MWh, under a special cap due to the war in Ukraine.

Five drones were recorded in a late night attack on Kyiv – the military administration of the city of Kyiv

The Kyiv City Military Administration has just released its preliminary information about the attack.

She said on Telegram that five drones entered the airspace of Kiev and that the Ukrainian air defense destroyed all of them, but the volley of ordnance from one of the drones hit an administrative building in Holosev, partially destroying the building and damaging the windows of a nearby residential building.

Updated at 04.53 GMT

Explosions were heard in Kyiv

Residents of Ukraine’s capital Kyiv were urged to head for air raid shelters early Friday as sirens sounded across the city, a day after Russia carried out its biggest air assault since the war began in February, Reuters reported.

Shortly after 2:00 a.m., the Kyiv city government issued an alert on its messaging app Telegram channel about air raid sirens and called on residents to head to shelters. A Reuters witness 20 km (12 miles) south of Kyiv heard several explosions and the sound of anti-aircraft fire.

Olekskiy Kuleba, the governor of the Kyiv region, said on Telegram that a “drone attack” was underway. A few hours later, he said, the attack targeted infrastructure and that there were no casualties.

Kuleba wrote on Telegram: “Night attack with drones. Russia once again targeted our infrastructure facilities. Air defense forces repelled the drones. Previously, there are no visits. Emergency services are working at the crash site.”

Summary and welcome

Hello, and welcome to our live coverage of the war in Ukraine. In the early hours of Friday morning, air raid sirens sounded in Kyiv, a day after Russia launched a massive missile attack on cities across the country. Several explosions were heard on Friday morning as residents were urged to stay in shelters.

In a post at 5 a.m., Kyiv Governor Oleksiy Kuleba said on Telegram that the attack targeted infrastructure and that there were no casualties.

My name is Helen Sullivan and I’ll keep you updated as they happen.

Here is a summary of the news from the last 24 hours:

The Belarusian state news agency Belta reported that a Ukrainian S-300 missile landed on the territory of Belarus during one of the largest Russian missile attacks against Ukraine since the start of the war.

The Ukrainian ambassador was summoned to the Foreign Ministry in Minsk to receive a formal protest after a foreign ministry spokesperson said the missile’s fall on Belarusian soil was “extremely dangerous”.

Russia launched a wave of missile attacks across Ukraine on Thursday morning, with the Ukrainian Air Force claiming to have shot down 54 of the 69 Russian cruise missiles launched at Ukraine from Russia’s Rostov, Caspian and Black Seas.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko stated that three people are known to have been injured in the capital, including a 14-year-old girl. Two people were rescued from a private house hit by debris. Klitschko said that 40% of the capital’s consumers were without electricity after the missile attack.

The Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, pledged that Rome would continue to aid the war effort in Kyiv and that she would visit before the end of February.

Britain’s defense secretary, Ben Wallace, has said the UK will commit £2.3 billion in aid to Ukraine in 2023.

Kazakhstan was preparing to deport a Russian security officer who fled his country because he objected to the invasion of Ukraine and hoped to find refuge in the West, his wife said Thursday. As an officer of the Federal Protective Service (FSO), which is assigned to protect the Russian president, Major Mikhail Zhilin, 36, was banned from leaving Russia and illegally crossed into Kazakhstan in September when it became clear he could be sent to Ukraine.

Updated at 05.53 GMT

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