Zelensky condemns 'inhumane' Christmas Day attack

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia had made a “conscious decision” to launch a major attack on his country’s energy infrastructure overnight on Christmas Day.

Ukraine’s air force said it had detected 184 missiles and drones, but many were shot down or missed their targets. It said there were casualties in the strikes but gave no figures. Moscow confirmed the attack and claimed its objectives had been achieved.

The attack knocked out power across the country, including in the capital Kiev, where some residents took refuge in metro stations. Russia’s defense ministry confirmed its forces had carried out a “massive attack” on “critical” Ukrainian energy facilities. It added that the attack was successful and all targets were hit. The country’s largest private energy company, DTE, said it was the 13th major attack on Ukraine’s energy sector this year.

 In response to the latest Russian attacks, US President Joe Biden said: “This heinous attack was intended to cut off the Ukrainian people’s access to heat and electricity in the winter and to jeopardize the security of its grid.” Biden – who will be succeeded by Donald Trump on January 20 – also urged the US Department of Defense to continue supplying weapons to Ukraine.

 In September, President Zelensky said that 80% of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure had been destroyed by Russian bombs. In response to Wednesday’s attacks, Zelensky said the timing was a “conscious choice”. He called them “inhumane” and said work was being done to restore power as soon as possible. “Russian evil will not break Ukraine and will not distort Christmas”, he added. This is the second time Ukraine has celebrated Christmas on December 25.

It traditionally follows the Julian calendar, like Russia, where Christmas falls on January 7. Still, a significant number of the country’s Orthodox believers will celebrate Christmas as usual. In Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest northeastern city, the attack left half a million people without water, electricity or heating in freezing temperatures, the regional head said. Ukrainians across the country woke up to the sound of air raid alarms and were told to take shelter as the morning attacks began. Kiev residents took shelter in metro stations, with one local telling Reuters news agency she felt angry and scared. “Of course, I want to stay home and celebrate, but we had to take shelter because it’s scary to stay home,” said Sofia Litvinenko. Another Kiev resident, Oleksandra, said that despite the attack, “Christmas has not been canceled.” She told Reuters that after leaving the shelter, she had planned to enjoy traditional Ukrainian food and drinks with family and friends.

Ukraine's state-owned power company, Kernberg, has warned Ukrainians that power outages could last at least until the end of the day. It has imposed restrictions on use while it tries to restore services. Meanwhile, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sabiha described the attacks as "Christmas terror". He said a Russian missile that crossed Moldovan and Romanian airspace was "a reminder that Russia does not only threaten Ukraine". Moldovan President Maia Sandu condemned the attack and confirmed that a missile had been detected in the country's airspace. Romania said it had not detected any missiles in its airspace. Elsewhere, Ukrainian shelling in Russia's Kursk region killed four people and wounded five, according to the region's acting governor.