Emergency blackouts in Ukraine as Russia fires fresh missiles

In fresh strikes by Russia, dozens of missiles were fired at power infrastructure in war-torn Ukraine.

Reuters reported that the latest strikes forced shutdown of emergency power in Ukraine amid freezing winters.

A Ukraine official said that Russian forces attacked with 60 missiles in fresh strikes at country's energy infrastructure in at least three cities.

Also watch: Russia planning new attack on Kyiv with 200,000 fresh troops, says Ukraine

Meanwhile, officals in Russia-controlled eastern Ukraine said that several civilians died as a result of Ukrainian shelling in at least two areas, Reuters added.

At least 8 people were killed and 23 wounded in Lantrativka area of Luhansk, Russian-installed officials claimed. While another civilian was killed due to Ukrainian shelling in Svatove town.

Russian forces launched at least 60 missiles across Ukraine on Friday, officials said, reporting explosions in at least four cities, including Kyiv.

At least two people were killed by a strike on a residential building in central Ukraine, where a hunt was on for survivors.

Electricity and water services were interrupted in the capital and Ukraine's second-largest city, Kharkiv. Thousands of people sought shelter in subway stations deep underground during the bombardment.

The Kyiv city administration said Ukraine's capital had withstood “one of the biggest rocket attacks” launched by Russian forces since they invaded Ukraine nearly 10 months ago.

The administration said Ukrainian air defence forces shot down 37 of “about 40” that entered the city's airspace. One person was injured, it said.

Thudding blasts and gunfire from air-defense systems echoed across the country as authorities on social media reported explosions and missile strikes in the city and southern Kryvyi Rih, southeastern Zaporizhzhia, and northeastern Kharkiv.

Air raid alarms sounded across the country, warning of a new barrage of the Russian strikes that have occurred intermittently since mid-October.

Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yurii Inhat told Ukrainian TV that more than 60 missiles had been fired, but it wasn't immediately clear how many missiles the Ukrainian army managed to intercept.

Ihnat said Russian forces had fired cruise missiles from positions in the Black Sea, and used bomber aircraft as part of an effort to “massively distract the attention of the anti-aircraft defence, keeping it in tension”.

At the site of one attempted strike in Kyiv, military commanders told The Associated Press that the city's territorial defense mobile group had unexpectedly — almost unbelievably — shot down a cruise missile with a machine gun

(With PTI inputs)