Ukraine-Russia war – live: Toddler’s body pulled from rubble as air strikes death toll rises
Search continues for survivors of wave of missile attacks on Friday, as Putin targets energy infrastructure
Your support helps us to tell the story
My recent work focusing on Latino voters in Arizona has shown me how crucial independent journalism is in giving voice to underrepresented communities.
Your support is what allows us to tell these stories, bringing attention to the issues that are often overlooked. Without your contributions, these voices might not be heard.
Every dollar you give helps us continue to shine a light on these critical issues in the run up to the election and beyond
Eric Garcia
Washington Bureau Chief
A toddler’s body has been removed from rubble following a wave of deadly airstrikes in Ukraine on Friday.
Emergency crews are continuing to search for survivors after Russian missiles tore through an apartment building in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih.
The missile was one of what Ukrainian authorities said were 16 that got through air defenses in the latest Russian attack targeting Ukrainian energy infrastructure.
The mayor of Kyiv announced today his city’s metro system is operational once again and residents have regained access to water.
Mayor Vitali Klitschko said while heat has been restored to half the city and electricity has been restored to two-thirds, emergency outages are still being implemented due to the significant deficit of electricity.
Four people were killed in Russia’s attacks in which over 70 missiles were launched targeting key energy infrastructure in Ukraine.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly address that Vladimir Putin had the means to order several similar waves of attacks to drain the country’s energy system.
ICYMI: UK clowns are travelling to refugee centres in Europe to perform for Ukrainian children
Clowns Without Borders UK has sent about 20 clowns to refugee centers in Europe to provide “emotional first aid” to Ukrainian children.
The children’s charity has sent 19 clowns to European countries, including Poland and Romania to try and ease the mental health strain of the children displaced by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The clowns were reportedly deployed as part of Project Laughter – a mission that has supported 1,850 Ukrainian refugee children since September.
“The point is that you get to say to a little child, through play, I see you, and I care about what’s happening to you,” Samantha Holdsworth, chief of Clowns Without Borders UK, told PA.
'Putin's war has been a failure for Russia', CIA director says
CIA director Bill Burns told PBS NewsHour that Russian president Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine has been a failure for the invading country, whose military, he said, “has performed poorly and suffered huge losses”.
“The Russian economy has suffered long-term damage. Most of the progress that the Russian middle class has made over the last 30 years is being destroyed,” he said yesterday.
“The Russian population seems increasingly uneasy about the costs of war as well,” the CIA director added.
ICYMI: Waves of missile attacks in Ukraine leave thousands without power
A series of over 70 Russian missiles attacking critical infrastructure in at least four Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, triggered blackouts across the country.
While 60 of the 76 missiles were reportedly intercepted, the attacks left at least three people dead and several injured.
Russia hit energy facilities in several Ukrainian oblasts, leaving several cities without power.
Strikes targeting such critical energy infrastructure have been part of Russia’s strategy since mid-October in an attempt to freeze Ukrainians.
You can read more about the missile attacks here:
Thousands left without water, power as huge Russian missile barrage strikes Ukraine
Three people were killed during the airstrikes as Moscow continues to target civilian infrastructure
Editorial: Next year could be the turning point in the Ukraine conflict
The West is right to give Zelensky a blank cheque to defend his land, because the cost of a new Russian domination of Eastern Europe would inevitably be far greater.
Russia’s targeted, strategic missile attacks are aimed at taking out power stations.
If Russia cannot win the war by defeating Ukraine’s military, it will instead try by crushing Ukraine’s civilian population.
But in 2023 events could swing Ukraine’s way as there are rumours about President Putin’s health, and as Russians realise their country’s “special military operation” hasn’t gone well.
Read the full piece here:
Editorial: Next year could be the turning point in the Ukraine conflict
Editorial: The West is right to give Zelensky a blank cheque to defend his land, because the cost of a new Russian domination of Eastern Europe would inevitably be far greater
Water supply back in Kyiv after Russian strikes
Kyiv’s mayor Vitali Klitschko has said the Ukrainian capital city’s water supply is back a day after targeted attacks on the country’s critical water and energy infrastructure by Russian air strikes.
Russia fired over 70 missiles yesterday in one of its biggest attacks since it invaded Ukraine in February.
While Ukraine reportedly intercepted 60 of the 76 missiles, the attack left at least three dead and several injured.
The capital city’s mayor said today that heating has been restored to half the city, adding that electricity is returned to two-thirds.
Putin ‘seeking proposals from army commanders to how war should proceed'
Vladimir Putin has sought proposals from his armed forces commanders on how they think Russia’s military operation in Ukraine should proceed, according to Russian news agency reports.
Putin took soundings from them on Friday during a visit to the headquarters of Russia’s joint task force on military operations in Ukraine, TASS and Interfax reported.
“We will listen to the commanders in each operational direction, and I would like to hear your proposals on our immediate and medium-term actions,” TASS quoted Putin as saying.
Putin spent the whole of Friday at the headquarters, his spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Interfax.
Russia launched 98 missiles on Friday as total updated, Ukraine says
Russian forces have updated the number of missiles fired in the latest attack to 98, Ukraine’s military leadership says.
The onslaught Friday, which pummeled many parts of central, eastern and southern Ukraine, involved one of the biggest attacks yet on the capital.
Kyiv came under fire from about 40 missiles on Friday, authorities said, though air defenses intercepted 37 of them.
Utility crews were scrambling to patch up damaged power and water systems.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported Saturday that two-thirds of homes had been reconnected to electricity and all had regained access to water. The subway system also resumed service, after serving as a shelter the day before.
In Kryvyi Rih, 596 miners stuck underground because of missile strikes were all rescued, Mayor Oleksandr Vilkul reported late Friday.
Russians claim Ukraine rockets have killed three civilians in occupied town
Ukrainian rockets have killed three civilians in the Russian-controlled town of Shchastia in Ukraine’s Luhansk province, according to Russian-appointed regional authorities.
In a posting on Telegram, Russian-backed Luhansk officials at what they call the Joint Centre of Control and Coordination said U.S.-made HIMARS rockets had killed three people, wounded five more, and destroyed four houses.
Man killed in Russian shelling in Kherson, Ukraine says
A 36-year-old man has been killed inside his car after Russian forces shelled the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, the regional governor said.
Yaroslav Yanushevych wrote on his Telegram channel that Russian troops had struck a western district of the city with artillery and multiple rocket launchers, also injuring a 70-year-old woman.
Ukrainian forces liberated the city from Russian occupation on 11 November but officials say Kremlin forces have continued shelling it from positions on the other side of the Dnipro River.
The governor of another Ukrainian region said earlier on Saturday that rescue workers had recovered the body of a one-year-old boy from the rubble of Russian strike on a residential building Friday morning.
Top Ukrainian general says country is preparing for Russian invasion from the north
One of Ukraine’s most senior military officers has said the country is ‘preparing’ for the likelihood of Russian attacks on the north.
Major General Andrii Kovalchuk spoke to Sky News, where he warned that the worst could be yet to come, but he’s confident that Ukraine will come out on top.
“We are considering a possible offensive from Belarus at the end of February, maybe later,” he said.
“It will no longer be the case that they [the Russians] will simply walk in, as was the case on 24 February.”
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments