Putin Rings in Christmas by Launching ‘Inhumane’ Attack on Ukraine
Russia launched an “inhumane” attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, causing blackouts in several regions and explosions across the country on Christmas morning, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday.
The attack marks Russia’s 13th assault on Ukraine’s power grid this year, according to the country’s largest energy provider DTEK. National police confirmed that at least one person has died in the eastern Dnipropetrovsk region and six others were injured in Kharkiv, CNN reports.
Russia launched more than 78 air, ground, and sea-launched missiles on Christmas Day, as well as more than 100 attack drones, according to NPR. The damage affected residential buildings and civilian infrastructure, with regional governor Oleh Syniehubov saying at least seven missiles targeted Kharkiv. The Ukrainian air force claimed to have intercepted 59 missiles and 54 drones, with 52 additional drones being jammed.
“Every massive Russian strike requires time for preparation. It is never a spontaneous decision. It is a deliberate choice—not only of targets but also of timing and date,” Zelensky wrote on X. “Today, Putin deliberately chose Christmas for an attack. What could be more inhumane?”
“Unfortunately, there are hits. As of now, there are blackouts in several regions,” he continued. Half a million households in the Kharkiv region have been left without heating following the attack, a precarious situation considering temperatures are resting at about 37 degrees Fahrenheit (3 degrees Celsius). DTEK added that Kyiv was imposing rolling blackouts to stabilize the country’s power grid.
Russia also struck Zelensky’s hometown, the city of Kryvyi Rih, on Christmas Eve, killing at least one person and injuring 17 others after one of its missiles struck a residential building.
Meanwhile in Russia, a command post was attacked by Ukrainian forces overnight in Lgov in the Kursk region. Regional head Alexander Khinshtein said four people were killed as a result. On Wednesday morning, a fire sparked by a shot-down drone also killed one woman and wounded three others with falling debris in a shopping mall in the city of Vladikavkaz.
