Ukraine, power restored for 800,000 Kyiv residents after Russian attacks

Turin, Oct. 11 (LaPresse/AP) – Electricity has been restored to more than 800,000 residents in Kyiv after yesterday’s heavy Russian attacks on Ukraine’s power grid, which had caused a blackout across much of the country. DTEK, Ukraine’s largest private energy company, said that “the main work to restore power supply” had been completed, though some localized outages were still affecting the Ukrainian capital following Friday’s “massive” Russian strikes. In the early hours of yesterday, Russian drone and missile attacks injured at least 20 people in Kyiv, damaged residential buildings, and caused blackouts in several regions of Ukraine. Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko described the attacks as “one of the largest concentrated strikes” against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. The Russian Defense Ministry said that it had targeted energy facilities supplying the Ukrainian military, without providing details about those sites, but confirmed that Russian forces used Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and attack drones. The energy sector has been a key battleground since Russia launched the conflict more than three years ago. Every year, Moscow has sought to cripple Ukraine’s power grid ahead of the harsh winter season, hoping to undermine public morale. Winter temperatures last from late October to March, with January and February being the coldest months. The Ukrainian Air Force said Saturday that its air defenses intercepted or destroyed 54 of the 78 Russian drones launched overnight against Ukraine, while the Russian Defense Ministry claimed to have shot down 42 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory.