Ukraine war

Overnight airstrikes by Russia target Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities

An explosion of a drone is seen in the sky over the city during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine June 20, 2023. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich

Early on Tuesday, Russia reportedly attacked military and infrastructure targets throughout Ukraine, including in the nation's capital Kyiv and the western city of Lviv, according to Ukrainian officials.

Of the 35 Iranian-made Shahed drones launched from the Azov Sea and the Bryansk region of Russia, Ukraine claimed to have shot down 32 of them.

However, a "critically important facility" was hit in Lviv, some 70 kilometers (43 miles) from the border with NATO member Poland, according to regional governor Maksym Kozytskiy. This was far from the front lines. Other facility information was withheld from him.

The latest airstrikes by Moscow since Kyiv launched a counteroffensive in which it claims to have reclaimed 113 square kilometers (44 square miles) of territory from Russian forces, there was no mention of any casualties in the overnight airstrikes.

In the majority of Ukraine's regions, air defenses have been in operation, the air force claimed on the messaging platform Telegram.

"However, the Kyiv region was the primary target of Iranian drone attacks. More than 20 Shaheds were obliterated here, it claimed.

Drones attacked the Kyiv region in several waves, according to the office of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, and the air alert lasted for more than four hours. According to the report, the damage was done to several business and government structures as well as some private homes.

According to the Energy Ministry, drone debris damaged electricity lines in the Mykolaiv region in the south and the Kyiv region, causing hundreds of residents to lose power.

Air defense systems simply cannot completely cover a country the size of Ukraine, according to air force spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat in a radio interview.

According to the air force, Iskander and S-300 missiles from Russia also struck the industrial city of Zaporizhzhia in the southeast.

Russia has targeted agricultural and farming properties, according to Yuriy Malashko, head of the Zaporizhzhia region's military administration.

According to early reports, Russia has fired seven missiles at Zaporizhzhia, according to the Ukrainian military.

According to the prosecutor's office, three people were injured and a 70-year-old woman was killed on Monday during a Russian artillery attack on the northeastern region of Sumy.

The reports could not be independently confirmed by Reuters. No immediate response was received from Russia.

Publish : 2023-06-20 16:51:00

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