Authorities in Kyiv reported that Russia conducted its most extensive aerial assault of the conflict late Thursday night, leading to the death of an elderly woman in Russia and leaving tens of thousands without power due to Ukrainian drone attacks on southern and central regions.
A drone impacted a two-story apartment building in the village of Dolotinka within the Rostov region, resulting in the death of a retired school teacher, according to acting Governor Yury Slyusar’s post on Telegram.
In the nearby town of Shakhty, another attack caused power outages for 2,000 homes, but no injuries were reported, Slyusar stated.
In the Moscow region, Governor Andrei Vorobyov reported that four drones crashed in the Sergiyev Posad area, injuring two individuals and causing damage to a power substation.
Sergiyev Posad authorities indicated that 42,000 residents experienced power outages. The regional utility company Rosseti Moscow Region later announced that power had been partially restored.
The Russian Defense Ministry claimed its air defenses shot down 48 Ukrainian drones across five regions overnight, stating that 26 drones were intercepted over the Rostov region, but no downings occurred in the Moscow area.
Civil aviation authorities temporarily halted flights in Volgograd, Samara, Saratov, Yaroslavl, Kazan, and Nizhnekamsk as a safety measure.
Meanwhile, Ukraine characterized Russia’s overnight aerial offensive as its largest since the full-scale invasion commenced. Yuriy Ihnat, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian Air Force, noted that Russia deployed a total of 550 drones and missiles in one nighttime onslaught.
In Kyiv, Russian strikes injured at least 23 individuals and caused damage to railways, which led to delays of up to two hours for passenger trains, as reported by Mayor Vitali Klitschko and Ukraine’s national railway entity.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky remarked that the strikes served as “evidence that without substantial pressure, Russia will not alter its reckless, destructive actions.”
“For every attack on individuals and human lives, they must face corresponding sanctions and other impacts on their economy, revenues, and infrastructure,” Zelensky posted on X.
The Russian Defense Ministry subsequently characterized the overnight air strike against Ukraine as a “precision” retaliation for what it termed “the terrorist actions of the Kyiv regime.”
These attacks on both sides occurred shortly after a phone conversation between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump, where Trump stated he “didn’t make any progress” in his efforts to end the war in Ukraine during their hour-long dialogue.
Since assuming office in January, Trump has aimed to mediate a peaceful resolution between Kyiv and Moscow, facilitating the first direct peace negotiations between the opposing sides since the early days of the full-scale invasion.
However, despite agreeing on multiple prisoner exchanges, Ukraine and Russia have yet to agree on a temporary ceasefire, which the White House has been advocating for over recent months.
Last week, Putin stated that Moscow and Kyiv are far from a peace agreement, describing the peace demands from both countries as “completely contradictory.”
Reporting by AFP contributed to this article.
