Russia launches barrage of missiles and drones that hit over half of Ukraine, officials say
LA TimesA mobile Ukrainian machine gun unit scans the sky for incoming Russian ordnance from a road in the capital, Kyiv, on Monday. Russia battered much of Ukraine on Monday, firing scores of missiles and drones that killed four people, injured more than a dozen and damaged energy facilities in attacks that President Volodymyr Zelensky described as “vile.” The barrage of over 100 missiles and a similar number of drones began around midnight and continued through daybreak in what appeared to be Russia’s biggest onslaught in weeks. Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said Russia fired drones, cruise missiles and hypersonic ballistic Kinzhal missiles at 15 Ukrainian regions — more than half the country. “We count on the support of our allies and will definitely make Russia pay.” The Russian Defense Ministry said the attacks used “long-range precision air- and sea-based weapons and strike drones against critical energy infrastructure facilities that support the operation of Ukraine’s military-industrial complex. The private energy company DTEK introduced emergency blackouts, saying in a statement that “energy workers throughout the country work 24/7 to restore light in the homes of Ukrainians.” In the wake of the barrage and the power cuts, officials across Ukraine were ordered to open “points of invincibility” — shelters where people can charge their phones and other devices and get refreshments during blackouts, Shmyhal said.