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Russia is escalating the war in Ukraine. With its ground offensive virtually at a standstill, the Russian military is trying to take advantage of its ballistic superiority by launching a massive attack just two days after the Ukrainians celebrated their Independence Day.
It has been almost two and a half years since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine. What President Vladimir Putin and the Russian military leadership called a "Special Operation" has dragged on, causing serious material and human losses on both sides.
As every year since the war began, as winter approaches, the Russian armed forces begin to target Ukraine's energy infrastructure to use the winter cold as a weapon against the Ukrainian population.
On Monday morning in Ukraine, Russia launched a massive attack with drones and hypersonic missiles, targeting energy infrastructure. The assault hit Kyiv's outskirts, Lutsk and Odesa, and the Kharkiv and Dnipro regions.
A tragic Independence Day
Kyiv had been waiting for weeks for Moscow's response to the Ukrainian incursion into Russia's Kursk region. In addition, the US Embassy in Ukraine warned in recent days about a possible attack around Ukraine's Independence Day, celebrated on Saturday, August 24.
In the early hours of the morning, the Ukrainian Air Force alerted the population that Russia had deployed 11 TU-95 strategic bombers, which began the missile offensive.
Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv's military istration, later reported via Telegram that the capital's anti-aircraft defenses had shot down 10 drones in the vicinity of the city.
In a later report, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia used more than 100 missiles of various types, including Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, and around 100 Shahed-type drones in the attack. The military said at least 15 regions were targeted.
The attack's toll
Initial reports indicate at least five people were killed in an impact on an industrial facility in the Poltava region. There are also reports of at least 30 people injured in other regions.
Ukrenergo, the Ukrainian energy company, said it has implemented emergency power cuts to stabilize the system. The Yasno power company said there are power cuts in Kyiv and Dnipro.
The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed the attack and said all designated targets were hit. According to the report, the targets were the power grid and railway lines used to transport supplies to the defending forces at the front.