Russian attacks on Ukraine’s Kyiv region kill four, target power grid 

Russian attacks on Kyiv and the surrounding region have killed at least four people, including a child, Ukrainian officials said, as Moscow presses on with its weeks-long bombardment of the Ukrainian capital.

The overnight barrage into Wednesday targeted energy facilities, damaging the power grid and disrupting electricity supplies in and around the Ukrainian capital, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

Russia’s Defence Ministry said its forces had struck power infrastructure in the Kyiv region.

DTEK, a major private Ukrainian energy company, said crews had restored electricity to about 8,000 households after the attacks. The company said parts of the grid had been damaged, adding to pressure on an energy system repeatedly hit during the war.

Kyiv was under air alerts for much of the night as missiles and drones approached the city. Ukrainian officials reported damage to homes, businesses, warehouses and vehicles.

Kyiv officials reported three deaths in the capital, while emergency services said a child was killed in the surrounding region.

Zelenskyy said critical infrastructure was also struck in the Zhytomyr, Mykolaiv, Kirovohrad and Rivne regions.

Russia’s Defence Ministry said its overnight operation used missiles and drones and included attacks on energy facilities in the Kyiv region that it said were connected to Ukrainian military production.

Moscow also said it struck a communications facility in Kyiv and port infrastructure in the southern city of Izmail.

The attack followed several days of heavier pressure on Kyiv, including strikes during daylight hours as well as repeated overnight barrages.

Russia has increasingly deployed jet-powered attack drones that travel faster than earlier models and are harder for Ukrainian air defences to intercept.

That challenge has added urgency to Ukraine’s calls for more air-defence support from its allies, particularly interceptors capable of countering ballistic missiles.

Belgian Defence Minister Theo Francken warned in Brussels on Wednesday that Europe could face more Russian “hybrid threats” in the coming months.

Francken called for faster expansion of air defences, weapons stocks and production.

The attacks come as temperatures begin to fall ahead of the winter months.

Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy system during the previous winter caused electricity and heating outages during severe cold, leaving the condition of the power network a major concern as the country heads towards another winter of war.