Russia-Ukraine war live: Kyiv residents urged to shelter in late-night drone attack targeting infrastructure | Ukraine

Explosions were heard in Kiev

Residents of the Ukrainian capital Kiev were urged to go to air raid shelters early on Friday as sirens wailed across the city, a day after Russia launched its biggest airstrike since the war began in February, Reuters reports.

Shortly after 2:00 a.m., the Kyiv city government issued an alert on its Telegram messaging app channel about air raid sirens and urged residents to take shelter. A Reuters witness 20 km (12 miles) south of Kiev heard several explosions and the sound of anti-aircraft fire.

Olekskiy Kuleba, the governor of the Kiev region, said on Telegram that a “drone attack” was underway. Hours later, he said the attack had targeted infrastructure and that there were no casualties.

Kuleba wrote on Telegram: “Attack at night by drones of martyrs. Russia once again targeted our infrastructure facilities. Air defense forces repelled the drones. Before, there is no shot. Emergency services are working at the scene of the crash.”

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Britain sends metal detectors and bomb disposal equipment to Ukraine

Britain said on Friday it has given Ukraine more than 1,000 metal detectors and 100 bomb disposal kits to help clear minefields in the latest example of military support.

“Russia’s use of landmines and targeting of civilian infrastructure underline the shocking cruelty of Putin’s occupation,” British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said in a statement.

“This latest package of UK support will help Ukraine safely clear land and buildings as it reclaims its rightful territory.”

The metal detectors, made by German firm Vallon, can help troops clear safe routes on roads and paths by helping to eliminate explosive hazards, the defense ministry said, while the kits can disarm the fuse from unexploded bombs.

President Maia Sandu, elected in 2020 on a pro-European and anti-corruption platform, expressed hopes on Thursday that crisis-hit Moldova would join the European Union before 2030.

“My wishes are very ambitious,” Sandu said in comments broadcast on public television channel Moldova-1. “I think we should become a member of the European Union by the end of this decade.

The EU accepted Moldova as a candidate for membership in June, when it granted the same status to neighboring Ukraine. It was a diplomatic triumph for Sandu, whose country is one of the poorest in Europe and faces numerous economic struggles.

Trees are covered in frost in the city center of Chisinau, Moldova, December 20, 2022. Photo: Dumitru Doru/EPA

Moldova has been trying to cut off Russian gas as it deals with blackouts caused in part by Moscow’s attacks on neighboring Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. It also faces protests over rising inflation.

In a sign of progress on Wednesday, Moldovan state utility Energocom announced a deal for Romania’s Nuclearelectrica to supply enough electricity to meet 80% of projected shortfalls in January 2023.

Romanian power producers have been given permission to sell electricity to Moldova at 450 lei per megawatt hour, under a special limit due to the war in Ukraine.

Five drones were registered in the late-night attack on the military administration of the city of Kiev-Kiev

The Kyiv City Military Administration has just posted its preliminary information about the attack.

He said on Telegram that five Shahed drones entered Kiev airspace and that all of them were destroyed by Ukrainian air defenses, but barrage ammunition from one of the drones hit an administrative building in Holosiiv, partially destroying the building and damaging the windows of a residential building nearby.

Updated at 04:53 GMT

Explosions were heard in Kiev

Residents of the Ukrainian capital Kiev were urged to go to air raid shelters early on Friday as sirens wailed across the city, a day after Russia launched its biggest airstrike since the war began in February, Reuters reports.

Shortly after 2:00 a.m., the Kyiv city government issued an alert on its Telegram messaging app channel about air raid sirens and urged residents to take shelter. A Reuters witness 20 km (12 miles) south of Kiev heard several explosions and the sound of anti-aircraft fire.

Olekskiy Kuleba, the governor of the Kiev region, said on Telegram that a “drone attack” was underway. Hours later, he said the attack had targeted infrastructure and that there were no casualties.

Kuleba wrote on Telegram: “Attack at night by drones of martyrs. Russia once again targeted our infrastructure facilities. Air defense forces repelled the drones. Before, there is no shot. Emergency services are working at the scene of the crash.”

Summary and welcome

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the war in Ukraine. In the early hours of Friday morning, air raid alarms sounded in Kiev, just a day after Russia launched a massive missile attack on cities across the country. Several explosions were heard Friday morning as residents were asked to stay in shelters.

In a post at 5 a.m., Kyiv Governor Oleksiy Kuleba said on Telegram that the attack targeted infrastructure and that there were no casualties.

My name is Helen Sullivan and I will bring you the latest developments as they happen.

Here’s a roundup of the news from the past 24 hours:

Belarus’ state news agency BelTA reported that a Ukrainian S-300 missile had fallen on Belarusian territory in one of Russia’s biggest missile attacks against Ukraine since the start of the war.

The Ukrainian ambassador was summoned to the Foreign Ministry in Minsk to receive a formal protest after the Foreign Ministry spokesman said the missile landing on Belarusian soil was “extremely serious”.

Russia launched a wave of missile attacks across Ukraine on Thursday morning, with Ukraine’s air force claiming to have shot down 54 of 69 Russian cruise missiles fired at Ukraine from Rostov in Russia, the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy acknowledged that most regions were suffering power cuts after the attacks, but he said the damage would have been worse without the “heroic” air defense. Zelenskiy, in a video address Thursday night, said air commands in central, southern, eastern and western Ukraine shot back 54 Russian missiles and 11 drones during one of Russia’s biggest airstrikes since the war began in February.

The mayor of Kyiv, Vitali Klitschko, declared that three people were injured in the capital, among them a 14-year-old girl. Two people were rescued from a private house that was hit by the rubble. Klitschko said 40% of the capital’s customers were without electricity after the rocket attack.

Italy’s prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, vowed that Rome would continue to help Kiev’s war effort and that she would visit before the end of February.

The UK will commit £2.3 billion in aid to Ukraine in 2023, UK defense secretary Ben Wallace said.

Kazakhstan was preparing to expel a Russian security officer who fled the country because he opposed the invasion of Ukraine and hoped to find refuge in the West, his wife said Thursday. As a Federal Protective Service (FSO) officer tasked with protecting the Russian president, Major Mikhail Zhilin, 36, was banned from leaving Russia and crossed illegally into Kazakhstan in September when it became clear he could be sent to Ukraine.