Russia on Thursday launched a barrage of missiles on cities in Ukraine including the country’s capital, Kyiv.
Ukraine’s military said it shot down 54 missiles out of 69 launched by Russia in an attack that began at 7am local time (05:00 GMT) on Thursday.
Mykhailo Podolyak, Ukrainian presidential adviser, said more than 120 missiles had been fired into the country.
Posting on Twitter, Podolyak said the missiles were “launched by the ‘evil Russian world’ to destroy critical infrastructure & kill civilians en masse”.
Ukraine’s Air Force said the attacks had involved sea and air-based cruise missiles fired “from different directions” and followed an overnight assault by kamikaze drones.
Air defence systems were activated in Kyiv to fend off the raids, according to local officials.
Vitali Klitschko, Kyiv’s mayor, said in a Telegram post that 16 missiles targeting the capital had been shot down.
But at least three people were wounded and hospitalised, including a 14-year- old girl, after a house and a car were damaged by rocket debris, Klitschko said. Search and rescue operations were continuing, he added.
Klitschko also warned of widespread power outages in the capital, saying 40 percent of its residents were without electricity following the attacks, and asked people to stockpile water and charge their electronic devices.
Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba took to Twitter to describe the attacks as “senseless barbarism”.
“These are the only words that come to mind seeing Russia launch another missile barrage at peaceful Ukrainian cities ahead of New Year,” he wrote.
