Russia has intensified strikes on Ukraine in a single day, with widespread assaults throughout the nation affecting most areas.
At the very least 12 folks, together with three youngsters, have been killed and dozens injured in Russian drone and missile strikes, regional officers and emergency companies mentioned.
The assault was the second large-scale assault on the nation in 48 hours, coming a day after the Ukrainian capital Kyiv suffered one of the heaviest assaults since the start of the Russian invasion.
Saturday’s strikes, which killed 13 folks throughout Ukraine, come as diplomatic efforts to finish the preventing have resulted in prisoner exchanges, however Russia has not accepted requires a ceasefire.
Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and Moscow at present controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory.
This contains Crimea – Ukraine’s southern peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014.
Ukraine’s air power mentioned that since 20:40 on Saturday native time (17:40 GMT), Russia had carried out strikes utilizing 367 missiles of assorted varieties, unmanned aerial automobiles (UAVs) and drones.
The air power mentioned it had shot down 45 cruise missiles and neutralised 266 UAVs, with most areas in Ukraine affected.
The air power recorded hits in 22 places and downed cruise missiles and UAVs in 15 areas.
The strikes mark an intensification from the earlier night time, when Ukraine’s air power mentioned Russia attacked with 14 ballistic missiles and 250 UAV and drones, affecting six areas.
Deaths have been reported in a number of areas after Saturday’s in a single day strikes.
Within the Kyiv area, 4 folks have been killed and 16 injured, together with three youngsters, Ukraine’s state emergencies service DSNS mentioned.
Kyiv regional head Mykola Kalashnyk posted photographs on social media of a number of homes set ablaze after the Russian strikes.
Within the capital, Kyiv, native officers reported 11 accidents, a number of fires and harm to residential buildings, together with a dormitory.
Lots of of individuals have been seen sheltering in underground stations of the town’s metro. It comes because the capital marks its annual Kyiv Day vacation on Sunday.
Khmelnytskyi regional head Serhiy Tyurin mentioned on Fb that 4 folks have been killed and 5 have been injured.
“Six personal homes have been destroyed, and one other 20 broken,” he added.
In Zhytomyr, DSNS mentioned three youngsters aged eight, 12 and 17 have been killed, 10 folks injured and personal properties “destroyed and broken”.
DSNS additionally mentioned the physique of an aged man was pulled out from a five-storey residential constructing hit by a drone in Mykolaiv. One other 5 folks have been injured.
In Kharkiv, regional authorities reported three accidents.
In Russia, the defence ministry mentioned 110 Ukrainian drones have been destroyed and intercepted over 12 Russian areas and the Crimea peninsula between midnight and 0700 native time.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported that 12 drones heading in direction of the capital have been shot down.
He added that emergency companies crews have been deployed to evaluate harm attributable to falling drone particles.
Within the Tula area, simply south of Moscow, drone wreckage crashed within the courtyard of a residential constructing, smashing home windows in quite a few residences, native governor Dmitriy Milyaev mentioned.
No-one was injured, he added.
The assaults got here as Russia and Ukraine participate in prisoner swaps agreed after talks between the 2 sides in Turkey.
On Friday, Ukraine and Russia every handed over 390 troopers and civilians within the greatest prisoner change since Russia launched its full-scale assault in February 2022.
On Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky introduced that one other 307 Ukrainian prisoners had returned house as a part of an change cope with the Kremlin.
The 2 international locations have agreed to swap a complete of 1,000 prisoners every, and one other change is anticipated on Sunday.
The swap follows the primary face-to-face talks between the 2 sides in three years, which occurred in Turkey.
Earlier this week, US President Donald Trump and Putin had a two-hour telephone name to debate a US-proposed Ukraine ceasefire deal.
Trump mentioned he believed the decision had gone “very properly”, and added that Russia and Ukraine will “instantly begin” negotiations towards a ceasefire and “an finish to the struggle”.
Nevertheless, Putin has solely mentioned Russia would work with Ukraine to craft a “memorandum” on a “attainable future peace”, and has not accepted a 30-day ceasefire.
