A wave of Russian drone and missile attacks early Friday crippled Ukraine’s already weakened energy infrastructure, plunging several regions into darkness and claiming the life of a seven-year-old boy, Ukrainian authorities confirmed.
The massive overnight assault — one of the most intense this year — targeted energy and railway facilities across nine regions, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of homes. In Kyiv, several explosions rocked the capital, causing blackouts and water supply disruptions in multiple districts.
By afternoon, emergency crews had restored electricity to about 270,000 households in the city, but much of eastern and southern Ukraine remained without power, according to the country’s energy ministry.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the strikes as a “cynical and calculated” attempt by Moscow to sow chaos and weaken national resilience.
The Ukrainian air force reported that Russia launched 465 drones and 32 missiles in the coordinated assault, of which 405 drones and 15 missiles were intercepted. However, several key energy installations were destroyed or severely damaged, including two power plants in Kyiv and others in different regions.
In the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region, a child was killed after debris from a downed drone struck residential buildings, local officials said. At least 33 people were injured nationwide.
Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko described the bombardment as “one of the largest concentrated strikes against energy facilities” since the invasion began in 2022. It marked the fourth major attack in a week against DTEK, Ukraine’s largest private energy company.
Residents in Kyiv recounted sleepless nights amid deafening explosions and shattering glass. “All the windows were blown out. We are alive, but our apartment is uninhabitable,” one resident said.
The fresh wave of strikes comes as Ukraine braces for another harsh winter under constant bombardment. Russian forces have intensified attacks on power stations and gas networks over the past month, raising fears of prolonged outages and humanitarian hardship.
Moscow’s defence ministry said the operation targeted facilities supplying power to Ukraine’s defence industries. But Kyiv accused Russia of waging an “energy terror” campaign aimed at breaking civilian morale.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s foreign ministry noted that the latest assault coincided with the third anniversary of Russia’s first large-scale strike on the country’s energy network.
Diplomatic efforts to end the three-and-a-half-year conflict remain stalled despite renewed mediation attempts led by U.S. President Donald Trump. Washington and NATO allies have vowed to increase support for Ukraine’s air defences and energy restoration efforts, but the Kremlin insists that prospects for peace are “fading.”
According to a recent UN report, at least 214 civilians were killed in Ukraine in September alone, as hostilities continue to escalate across multiple fronts.
