KYIV and LONDON — Ukrainian energy facilities in six regions were bombarded early Wednesday by a Russian air attack, an hourslong strike that included dozens of missiles and drones, Ukrainian officials said.
Russia launched at least 21 attack drones, including Iranian-made Shahed drones, along with about 55 missiles, Ukrainian military officials said.
Ukrainian anti-aircraft defenses downed 20 of the drones and about 39 other projectiles, the Air Force of Ukraine said in a statement.
People take shelter inside a metro station during a Russian military attack, amid Russia’s attacks on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine, May 8, 2024.
Alina Smutko/Reuters
The attack on Wednesday ranked among the widespread assaults on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure since March 22, 2024, when Russia launched its largest attack on Ukrainian energy infrastructure since the war began.
“On Remembrance and Victory over Nazism in World War II Day, Nazi Putin launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on social media.
First responders were working to “mitigate the consequences of Russian terror,” he said, adding, “The entire world must understand who is who. The world must not give a chance to new Nazism.”
Energy facilities were damaged in the Poltava, Kirovohrad, Zaporizhzhia, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Vinnytsia regions.
Ukrainian servicemen use a searchlight as they search for drones in the sky over the city during a Russian drone and missile strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on May 8, 2024.
Gleb Garanich/Reuters
The attack began around midnight, when drones entered Ukrainian airspace, and continued for about seven hours, officials said. Missiles were launched from aircraft at about 4 a.m. Air-raid sirens that had blared around Ukraine had been cancelled by 7 a.m. Wednesday.
According to the state energy operator Ukrenerho, electricity generation facilities were damaged.
Russia had previously targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure on March 22, March 29, April 11 and April 27.
Source Agencies
