Moscow responds to the Crimean bridge blast

Russian missile strikes rock cities throughout Ukraine

On October 10, just two days after an apparent attack on the only bridge linking Russia to Crimea, Russian launched missile strikes in at least a dozen cities throughout Ukraine. According to Ukrainian authorities, Moscow’s goal was to damage Ukrainian energy infrastructure. Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov called the attacks “part of the special [military] operation.” Here’s what we know about the strikes so far.

On the morning of October 10, cities throughout Ukraine came under shelling attacks. Ukrainian media and local authorities reported explosions in Kyiv, Khmelnytskyi, Zhytomyr, Ternopil, Lviv, Kremenchuk, Kryvyi Rih, Kharkiv, Konotop, Odessa, Rivne, and Dnipro. Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi has blamed Russia for the attacks. The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reported that Russian troops had launched a total of 83 missiles at Ukraine, 43 of which were intercepted by air defense systems. According to local reports, the attacks are ongoing.

Kyiv Mayor Vitaly Klitschko confirmed that missile strikes had hit the city’s Shevchenkivskyi and Solomianskyi districts, calling on local residents not to remain in the city. The last attack on Kyiv came in late June. According to local Telegram channels, at least five explosions were heard in the city on Monday, while Deputy Head of the Ukrainian President’s Office Kyrylo Tymoshenko reported that at least six missiles had been struck down in and around Kyiv by air defense forces. Regional head Oleksiy Kuleba told residents to stock up on water and charge their electronic devices.

Ukraine’s National Police have reported that five people were killed and 12 people were injured by the shelling. Ukrainian Interior Ministry advisor Rostislav Smirnov reported that as of 8:45 local time, eight people had been killed and 24 had been injured.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on residents of cities being targeted by shelling attacks not to leave their shelters. “It’s the 229th day of the full-scale war. The 229th day they’re trying to destroy us and wipe us from the face of the earth. Completely. To destroy our people, who are sleeping in their homes in Zaporizhzhia. To kill people on their way to work in Dnipro and Kyiv,” he said.

Russia is targeting energy infrastructure throughout Ukraine, Zelensky said in a later video address. Missile strikes have already hit critical infrastructure in Kyiv and Khmelnytskyi, as well as energy facilities in Lviv, Kharkiv, and the Zhytomyr region. According to Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, a total of 11 infrastructure targets in eight regions were damaged.

Law enforcement has blocked of Kyiv’s central streets, suspended metro traffic, and begun using metro stations as bomb shelters for civilians.

Russian government-controlled news agency TASS reported that strikes had hit Kyiv’s Volodymyrska Street, where the Ukrainian Security Service building is located. Elsewhere in the Kyiv region, a missile hit a thermal power plant. Parts of Lviv and Kharkiv have lost power. Ukrainian Railways reported that overhead lines in western Ukraine had been damaged and that train service might be delayed as a result. All schools in the country will switch to remote learning until October 14.

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At a briefing on Monday afternoon, Russian Defense Ministry representative Igor Konashenkov said the following:

Today, the Russian Armed Forces carried out a massive strike with long-range high-precision weapons against Ukrainian military, communication, and energy targets. The goal of the attack has been accomplished. All of the designated targets have been hit.