Russia 'purposefully' hit critical infrastructure in latest strikes, Kyiv mayor says
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- Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said Russia's overnight attack was the first time in several months critical infrastructure "was purposefully attacked" in the capital, killing at least 17 and injuring more than 40 across apartment blocks, warehouses, a children's hospital, and a school.
- President Zelensky warned that "as long as Ukraine does not have enough anti-ballistics, Russia will not seriously think about peace," noting that Patriot interceptor missiles "have not yet been replaced."
- The Ukrainian Air Force update implied none of the Russian ballistic missiles fired overnight were intercepted; Ukraine's shortage stems partly from American Patriot stockpiles being depleted during the US war with Iran.
- UN Secretary-General António Guterres "strongly condemned" the strikes as "yet another tragic example of the alarming pattern of escalating strikes against populated areas."
- Ukraine's deputy intelligence chief told the BBC the attack fits Russia's planned strategy to inflict hardship ahead of winter, with disrupted hot water supplies already reported in the Desnyansky and Dnipro districts.
- Russia's defence ministry said it used air, land and sea-based weapons against military facilities and warehouses, and claimed 726 Ukrainian drones were shot down overnight as Ukraine escalated strikes including a 600-drone barrage on Moscow over the weekend.
Why it matters: The deliberate targeting of Kyiv's critical infrastructure, alongside Ukraine's escalating drone campaign against Russian cities, points to a winter of intensifying mutual strikes with no diplomatic off-ramp. For Ukraine's Western backers, the Patriot stockpile gap now translates directly to dead and wounded in Kyiv — an arms-supply shortfall measured in casualties.
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