🎙️ Voice is AI-generated. Inconsistencies may occur.
Russia reportedly carried out another massive wave of strikes against Ukraine, targeting areas in the east and south.
Though some believed Russian President Vladimir Putin would achieve a quick victory over Ukraine when he launched the invasion on February 24, the war has stretched on for more than 10 months and passed the 300-day mark last week.
While facing embarrassing setbacks like the withdrawal from Kherson city in November and a failure to take the Donetsk city of Bakhmut despite a monthslong effort, Putin has conducted a series of attacks targeting Ukraine's critical infrastructure and civilian areas in recent months.
It remains unclear whether Russia will be able to continue the waves of strikes in the long term, since one high-ranking Ukrainian official said this month that Russia is running out of missiles to attack Ukraine's infrastructure.
On Wednesday, air raid alerts were heard all over Ukraine, including the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula, the Kyiv Independent reported. Oleg Sinegubov, the governor of Ukraine's eastern Kharkiv region, wrote in a Telegram post on Wednesday that a Russian shell hit a residential apartment building in the village of Kivsharivka.
"The enemy does not stop shelling the peaceful settlements of Kharkiv region in the [Kupiansk] district...The apartment was heavily damaged. According to preliminary information, there were no casualties," the Telegram post read. Sinegubov shared several photos of the damage.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine wrote in an operational updateWednesday that during the past day, Russia had launched at least one missile and fired 33 "bombardments from jet fire systems," targeting civilian objects in Kherson.
"The danger of the enemy's mission of air and missile strikes on the country's critical infrastructure remains," the update said.
A Ukrainian official also reported on the state of the region on Wednesday, writing in one Telegram post that Russian troops shelled Kherson 50 times.
"Peaceful settlements of the region suffered from attacks from artillery, MLRS, mortars and tanks," Kherson Governor Yaroslav Yanushevich wrote. "The enemy attacked the city of Kherson 23 times. Enemy shells hit a medical institution, a kindergarten, a bakery, warehouses, private and apartment buildings. Last day, three people were injured in varying degrees of severity due to Russian shelling."
On Tuesday, Ukrainian Health Minister Viktor Liashko posted on his Facebook page that Russia allegedly shelled a maternity hospital in Kherson where two babies had been born that day. He added that "fortunately," no babies or staff were hurt in the incident.
The full extent of the damage caused by the reported Russian strikes across Ukraine was not immediately clear. Newsweek reached out to Russia's Defense Ministry and the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine for comment.
About the writer
Zoe Strozewski is a Newsweek reporter based in New Jersey. Her focus is reporting on U.S. and global politics. Zoe ... Read more