Putin chose to hit Ukraine’s energy infrastructure at Christmas: Zelenskyy

• Russia attacked Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure on December 25, causing blackouts.
• Zelenskyy called the Christmas Day missile and drone strikes “inhumane”.
• Mass attacks on Ukraine’s energy have been a hallmark of Russia’s full-scale invasion.

Russia launched an attack on Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure on December 25 in what President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described as an “inhumane” move, according to multiple reports.

Zelenskyy said in a Telegram message that more than 70 missiles, including ballistic missiles and more than 100 attack drones, were fired at Ukrainian energy targets.

“Any 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,” he said. according to the BBC’s translation.

“Today, Putin deliberately chose Christmas for an attack. What could be more inhumane?”

In 2022, Ukraine’s Orthodox Church allowed Christmas to be celebrated on December 25, in what was widely read as a revelation by Russia, which is largely celebrated on January 7. Much of Ukraine has since followed suit.

On Wednesday, Zelenskyy shared several photos of firefighters working to tackle the damage in the Dnipropetrovsk region.

Ukraine’s forces shot down at least 50 of the missiles and many of the drones, but there were still power outages in several regions as a result of the hits, Zelenskyy said.

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Ukraine’s energy minister, German Galushchenko, too said in a Facebook post that the country’s energy industry was under attack on a mass scale, forcing blackouts.

DTEK, Ukraine’s largest energy company, called called the attack “cynical”, saying it had caused serious damage and had forced energy systems to cut power to the Dnipropetrovsk, Odesa and Kiev regions.

The northeastern city of Kharhkiv – Ukraine’s second largest – was among the worst hit, according to its mayor, Ihor Terekhov, who said there had been a series of explosions under massive rocket fire.

Four people were injured, and a large part of the city was without heating at 10 o’clock. local time, he said.

Video shared on social media — which Business Insider could not independently verify — appeared to show air raid sirens going off in Kiev amid reports that people shelter in metro stations.

Explosions were also reported in Kremenchuk, Kryvyi Rih and Ivano-Frankivsk, It was reported by Kyiv Independent.

Mass attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure have been a hallmark of Russia’s full-scale invasion. There have been several mass strikes throughout the year, and as of November, an estimated two-thirds of the country’s power generation capacity was knocked out.

Representatives of Ministry of Defense of Russia did not immediately respond to a Business Insider request for comment.