Russia launches Christmas Day attack on Ukraine

Many Ukrainians celebrated without heat or power after Russia launched a Christmas Day attack on the country’s energy infrastructure, an act Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned as “inhumane”.

“Today, Putin deliberately chose Christmas for an attack. What could be more inhumane,” Zelenskyy said in a post on X early Wednesday. “Every Russian massive attack takes time to prepare. It is never a spontaneous decision. It is a deliberate choice, not only of target, but also of time and date.”

Over 70 Russian missiles and more than a hundred drones targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, with Ukrainian forces successfully shooting down more than 50 missiles and a significant number of drones, Zelenskyy added in his post.

Zelenskyy also said that the “targeted attack” on the energy sector caused blackouts in several regions, including Kiev, and stressed that Russian forces “continue to fight for a blackout in Ukraine.”

“Russian evil will not break Ukraine and will not distort Christmas,” he said.

Russia’s Defense Ministry confirmed the attacks.

“This morning, Russia’s armed forces carried out a massive attack with long-range precision weapons and attack drones on critical energy infrastructure facilities in Ukraine that ensure the operation of the military-industrial complex,” the ministry said in its daily briefing on Telegram.

“The aim of the strike was achieved. All facilities were hit,” it added.

“This Christmas terror is Putin’s answer to those who talked about illusionary ‘Christmas truce,'” Andrii Sybiha, Ukraine’s foreign minister, said in a post X Wednesday morning.

The attack caused “serious damage” to thermal power plant equipment, according to DTEK, Ukraine’s largest energy company. When the shelling stopped, energy sector workers began “restoring the equipment” to ensure a quick recovery, it said.

Ukraine’s Energy Minister Herman Hlushchenko confirmed that Russia “massively attacked the energy system,” in a Telegram post Wednesday morning.

He urged the population to stay in shelters until the shelling stopped, adding that necessary measures had been implemented to “minimize the negative impact on the power system.”

This marks Russia’s 13th attack on Ukraine’s energy sector this year, and the 10th attack on the company’s energy companies, according to a post on DTEK’s official Telegram account.

This is only the second time in modern Ukrainian history that Christmas is officially celebrated on December 25, a marked shift away from the traditional January 7 celebration observed by Russians and other Eastern Orthodox Christians.

“For the second time in modern history, Christmas unites all Ukrainians,” Zelenskyy said in an earlier post on X.

“Today we stand side by side. And we will not be lost,” Zelenskyy said, adding, “Ukrainians are together today. And as long as we do this, evil has no chance.”

Meanwhile, Russian officials said Wednesday that four people had been killed and five wounded in the partially occupied Kursk region after Ukrainian shelling.

The region’s acting governor, Alexander Khinshtein, said in a post on Telegram that gas and electricity supplies in the city of Lgov had also been disrupted by the shelling.