Russia Kills Four in Kyiv Strikes on Power Grid — SkimNews
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- Russia launched overnight missile and drone strikes on Kyiv and the surrounding region, killing four people — three in Kyiv plus a child in Vyshhorod — and wounding at least four others, with three more rescued from rubble.
- Zelenskyy said the main Russian targets were energy infrastructure in Kyiv and the surrounding region, describing it as 'a difficult attack' and thanking foreign countries for recent air-defence deliveries ahead of winter.
- Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat said Russia fired 2,850 jet-propelled drones in August but had already launched 3,177 this month by Tuesday, with attacks arriving in waves mostly aimed at Kyiv.
- Russian forces are exploiting gaps in Ukraine's air defences by using ballistic missiles and new jet-powered drones, both difficult to intercept, according to Ukrainian officials who say Ukraine needs additional Patriot missiles.
- The Russian Defence Ministry claimed the overnight barrage hit a hydroelectric power plant, a thermal power plant, an electrical substation, an energy storage facility and a data centre; Ukrainian officials confirmed civilian areas in at least four Kyiv districts were struck.
- Moscow has sharply stepped up its aerial campaign since the end of August, with officials noting air raid alerts continue to disrupt daily life, forcing people into shelters and hurting economic activity.
- Ukraine rejects Moscow's demand to surrender land as a condition for a comprehensive settlement, with Kyiv saying Russia is not engaging with US efforts to stop the fighting 4½ years into the invasion.
Why it matters: Russia's escalation is now quantified: jet-propelled drone launches jumped from 2,850 in all of August to 3,177 in roughly half of September, signalling an industrial-scale tempo aimed squarely at Ukraine's energy grid before winter. With Ukraine's Patriot missile stockpile flagged as insufficient and Russia bypassing air defences with ballistic missiles and jet-powered drones, Kyiv's ability to keep the lights and heat on this winter is directly tied to how fast Western air-defence deliveries arrive.
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