Russian strikes on Kyiv have left two people dead and triggered a nationwide power outage, Ukrainian authorities said on Friday.
The attacks came at a time when Russian forces on Thursday said they had encircled more than 10,000 Ukrainian troops in the strategic city of Kupiansk. Additionally, Russian armed forces have pushed back the Ukrainian defence lines across the entire North-Eastern battle lines, they said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a social media post that from Wednesday, Russian forces have launched more than 650 Kamikaze drones and over 50 missiles on Ukraine. The Russian military sources also claimed that the strikes continued on Friday morning.
According to official Ukrainian sources, two people were killed in the southern region of Zaporizhzhia.
Meanwhile, the strikes also damaged the power infrastructure in Kyiv and other areas. Ukraine's power company said a nationwide blackout occurred temporarily on Thursday morning.
Zelenskyy, while denouncing the attacks, said that these were particularly aimed at targeting civilian infrastructure.
However, Ukrainian forces have also struck Russia’s energy infrastructure over the past week. He urged G7 countries to increase their sanctions to put more pressure on Russia's energy industry and financial system.
The Russian defence ministry on Thursday said Moscow had carried out a massive strike "in response to the terrorist attacks launched by Ukraine against civilian facilities on the territory of Russia." The two countries have been launching attacks against each other's energy infrastructure ahead of the harsh winter months.
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