Deadly Russian strikes batter Ukraine

KIEV

This photograph shows smoke rising over buildings in Kiev, following a Russian air attack on Aug. 26, 2024, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Russian strikes across Ukraine on Monday killed at least three people, wounded several, and damaged energy infrastructure.

Russian drones and missiles on Monday targeted 15 regions across Ukraine in an overnight barrage aimed mainly at energy infrastructure, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmygal said.

"Russian terrorists have once again targeted energy infrastructure. Unfortunately, there is damage in a number of regions," Shmygal said in a post on social media, also calling for support from Ukraine's allies to help thwart aerial attacks.

AFP journalists in the capital heard explosions ring out early on Monday—likely from air defense systems—while residents rushed to take shelter in metro stations.

An AFP photographer also saw black smoke rising over Kiev.

Authorities in at least six regions of the country said blasts had been heard in their territories.

The governor of the central Dnipropetrovsk region, Sergiy Lysak, said Russian forces had attacked "en masse."

"There is one dead, a 69-year-old man," the governor wrote on social media.

In the Zaporizhzhia region, the attack killed one civilian, governor Ivan Fedorov said, without elaborating.

In the western city of Lutsk, Russian bombardment damaged an apartment building and an infrastructure facility, the mayor, Igor Polishchuk, said.

He added that one person had been killed.

The attack also targeted energy facilities in the Lviv region in the west of the country, the governor said.

In the wider region of Kiev, authorities said Russia used drones and missiles to attack energy infrastructure and one person was wounded.

"As a result, there are partial power outages in (the city of) Lviv and the region," governor Maksym Kozytskyi said on social media.

Earlier, an attack on an industrial facility in the eastern region of Poltava wounded five people, governor Filip Pronin said.

Since invading in February 2022, Russia has launched dozens of large-scale drone and missile attacks on Ukraine.

Most recently, those strikes have targeted energy facilities causing millions of dollars worth of damage and disrupting the lives of millions of Ukrainians.