Russia strikes Ukraine's power grid in “most massive” attack of war

PHOTO CAPTION: Firefighters work at the site of a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Odesa region, Ukraine August 26, 2024. Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Odesa region/Handout via REUTERS

By Pavel Polityuk, Tom Balmforth and Yuliia Dysa

KYIV (Reuters) -Russia attacked Ukraine with more than 200 missiles and drones on Monday, killing seven people and striking energy facilities nationwide, Kyiv said, while neighbouring NATO member Poland reported a drone had probably entered its airspace.

Power cuts and water supply outages were reported in many areas, including parts of Kyiv, as officials said the attack - 2-1/2 years since the full-scale invasion - targeted power or other critical infrastructure across the country.

Russia stepped up its strikes on the Ukrainian power grid in March in what Kyiv has said looked like a concerted effort to degrade the system ahead of next winter when people need electricity and heating most.

The air force downed 102 out of 127 incoming missiles and 99 out of 109 drones, Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk said on Telegram, describing the attack from the air, ground and sea as "the most massive" of the war.

According to Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, 15 regions sustained damage. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said there was "a lot of damage in the energy sector".

U.S. President Joe Biden condemned Russia's strikes as "outrageous." In a statement on Monday, he added that Washington will continue surging energy equipment to Ukraine to repair its systems and to support Ukraine's energy grid.

Zelenskiy said he had discussed Ukraine's response to the attack with his top commander: "We are preparing it."

Russia's defence ministry said its forces used high precision weapons to strike important energy infrastructure in Ukraine which it said supported the military-industrial complex. It listed power substations, gas compressor stations and storage sites for aircraft weapons.

Ukraine has claimed new ground in a major cross-border incursion into Russia's western Kursk region while Russian forces steadily have inched forward in Ukraine's east, closing in on the transport hub of Pokrovsk.

After meeting top officials, Zelenskiy said a decision had been taken "further strengthen" the Pokrovsk front, which saw at least 56 combat clashes on Monday, according to the military.

POLISH AIRSPACE

Poland said a search was underway after an "object" entered its airspace and possibly landed on Polish territory.

"Most likely it was a drone and we assume so, because the trajectory of the flight and the speed indicate that it was definitely not a missile," Jacek Goryszewski, spokesperson for the Polish army's operational command, told Reuters.

Two Russian drones crossed the border into Belarus, Ukraine's air force commander said.

Top Kyiv officials again urged their allies and arms suppliers to allow long-range strikes into Russia.

Zelenskiy also redoubled his call for allies to join the country in shooting down missiles and drones over Ukrainian airspace.

Ukraine had no powerful long-range weapons at the start of the invasion, but has since developed many models of long-range attack drone and used them to hit targets deep inside Russia, ranging from oil refineries to military airfields.

Over the weekend, Zelenskiy said Ukraine had developed a new "drone missile" that had been used to attack Russia and was more powerful and faster than other hardware in Kyiv's arsenal.

DAMAGED FACILITIES

At least 47 people were injured, including four children, emergency services said.

The regions that reported strikes on power or critical infrastructure included Volyn and Rivne in the northwest, Khmelnytskyi, Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk in the west, Zhytomyr in the north, Dnipropetrovsk, Kirovohrad and Vinnytsia in central Ukraine, Zaporizhzhia in the southeast and Odesa in the south.

Zelenskiy said some civilian facilities were attacked with cluster munitions.

Neighbouring Moldova, whose grid is linked to that of Ukraine, reported small disruptions to its power network.

Ukraine's foreign ministry official said a hydropower plant in the Kyiv region had been targeted. A video posted on social media and verified by Reuters showed a damaged dam and a fire after an apparent strike at a plant. A separate clip, also verified, showed a missile hitting a water reservoir.

In the northeastern Sumy region, from where Ukraine launched its incursion into Russia on Aug. 6, authorities said a railway infrastructure facility had been struck, but did not say which one or give further details.

A 69-year-old man in the Dnipropetrovsk region and a farmer in the Zaporizhzhia region were among at least seven people confirmed dead, local officials said. The others were in the regions of Kharkiv, Zhytomyr and Volyn.

In Lutsk, an apartment block was damaged, the mayor said after reporting explosions.

Blasts also shook central Kyiv and air defences engaged incoming targets on the outskirts.

At least 11 TU-95 strategic bombers were used during the attack, the air force said.

Both Russia and Ukraine deny deliberately targeting civilians. Each says its attacks are aimed at destroying infrastructure critical to the other's war effort.

(Additional reporting by Gleb Garanich and Anastasiia Malenko in Kyiv and Barbara Erling in Warsaw; writing by Tom Balmforth and Lidia Kelly; editing by Mark Heinrich, Angus MacSwan, Ros Russell and David Gregorio)