Volodymyr Zelensky branded the attacks as “wicked” but Ukraine hit back with its new home-produced missiles striking a key port for Russia’s oil experts on the Black Sea
The war between Russia and Ukraine saw a surge in intensified fighting last night as both sides unleashed some of the most intense long-distance strikes of the war so far.
At least four people were killed in Kyiv, with more than two dozen injured, including children in the strikes which saw around 430 drones and 18 missiles launched, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky. He called the onslaught: “A specially calculated attack to cause as much harm as possible to people and civilians.”
Zelensky added that the Azerbaijan Embassy was damaged by the fragments of an Iskander missile. He branded the attack, which hit “dozens of apartment buildings” as “wicked”, adding that “we know of dozens of wounded including children and a pregnant woman”.
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“They are hitting people and residential buildings – just complete scum,” said MP Oleksiy Goncharenko. The strikes were branded as “inhuman” as city authorties warned power and water outages were possible.
Putin mouthpiece and former president Dmitry Medvedev made it clear that Russia’s aim is to break through Ukrainian defences and hit civilian power plans to freeze Zelensky’s people as winter causes temperatures to plummet. He said: “The encirclement of his troops threatens to send the whole frontline crashing down – and from there, who knows, maybe more territorial losses to follow.
“The energy grid is collapsing under Russian strikes. Electricity is still on, but with constant blackouts. And the heating situation is dire.” He added Ukraine was now in a “classic zugzwang”, where every move will lead to further losses.
But Ukraine hit back, causing devastation at the key Russian port of Novorossiysk with its new home-produced missiles and powerful drones. Huge explosions rang out and massive infernos broke out at the major oil loading complex with Russian officials reporting that drones had damaged a docked ship, apartment buildings and “coastal structures” as well in the area.
Another target in the same Black Sea city as the key outlet for Russian oil was Putin’s 1537th Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment with large rocket deontations as Russian S-300/S-400 SAM systems were believed to have been hit. In a further blow to the Russian despot, his notorious Doomsday Radio is said to have been knocked off the air by a drone strike on the electricity station that powers it in northern Russia.
The strange station, which is a Cold War relic, has been on air for 50 years now, and usually just transmits buzzing sounds – leading to its nickname The Buzzer. But it crackles into life, often at times of high global tensions, transmitting coded messages. Before falling silent, it transmitted the codes ‘RUST’ and ‘SIMOMOR’/
The shortwave radio messages are seen as being broadcast by Russian Strategic Forces networks, linked to Putin’s nuclear strike capability. These Doomsday Radio broadcasts are not apocalyptic launch orders but are perhaps encrypted test or readiness messages issued on the Strategic Rocket Forces high frequency network.