The air raid alarm sounded over large parts of Ukraine on Christmas morning. According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russia fired over 70 rockets and 100 drones at the country's energy system.
Putin deliberately chose to attack during Christmas. What can be more inhumane?, says Zelensky, adding that Ukraine's air force shot down over 50 rockets.
Unfortunately, there have been some hits. Power outages have occurred in several regions.
Zelensky receives support from his American counterpart.
"The purpose of this scandalous attack was to cut off the Ukrainian people's access to heat and electricity during the winter and to jeopardize the security of the country's power grid", says Joe Biden in a statement.
Passed through other countries' airspace
According to Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrij Sybiha, a Russian missile passed through Moldova's and Romania's airspace – which "reminds us that Russia is not only threatening Ukraine", writes Sybiha on X.
Moldova's government confirms that a missile passed over the country, while NATO member Romania reports that it has not detected any Russian missiles in its airspace.
Explosions have been heard and people have been injured in several parts of the country. In Kharkiv in northeastern Ukraine, Governor Oleh Synehubov reported that fires were burning in several places in the city and that at least six civilians were injured. The local authorities have also evacuated around 40 people. Russian forces have attacked Kharkiv almost daily for the past two years.
In the city of Kherson in southern Ukraine, one person has been killed and several people have been injured.
Explosions have also been heard in cities such as Dnipro, Kremenchuk, and Kryvyi Rih.
In the midst of Christmas celebrations
The governor of Dnipropetrovsk in southeastern Ukraine, Serhij Lysak, says that Russia is attacking the power grid in the region.
"Stay in a safe place until the air raid warning has been lifted. Take care of yourselves!", he writes on Telegram.
Ukraine officially celebrates Christmas on December 25 for the second year in a row. The government changed the date from January 7, when most Orthodox believers celebrate, as a mark of defiance against Russia.
As a result of the Russian attack, Poland's defense forces announced that they had sent up military aircraft into the airspace, writes the Polish air force on X.
