Ukraine shot down 39 of 55 Russian missiles in a massive attack

Russian forces launched a large-scale missile and drone attack on Ukraine on Tuesday evening, causing destruction in several regions and damaging the country’s energy infrastructure, officials said.

The Ukrainian Defense Ministry said Russia targeted the cities of Lviv, Vinnytsia, Kiev, Poltava, Ivano-Frankivsk, as well as the Kirovohrad and Zaporizhzhia regions. Air defense systems shot down 39 of 55 Russian missiles. These included 33 Kh-101 cruise missiles, four Kalibr cruise missiles and two Kh-59/69 cruise missiles, as well as 20 Iranian-made Shahed kamikaze drones.

“On a memorial day, Ukraine was hit by a heavy missile and drone attack. The world must unite to prevent the rise of a new Nazism,” the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said, referring to May 8, VE Day, when Ukraine commemorates the defeat of Nazi Germany.

Newsweek The Russian Defense Ministry emailed for comment.

The targets included three thermal power plants owned by DTEK, the largest private energy company in Ukraine, the company said the attacks caused significant damage.

DTEK said it was “another extremely tough night for Ukrainian energy” and that it was the fifth attack on its facilities in the last month and a half.

“The enemy attacked three thermal power plants. The equipment was badly damaged. Energy engineers must deal with the consequences of the attack,” DTEK said. “Since the full-scale invasion began, DTEK thermal power plants have been attacked approximately 180 times. During this time, 51 workers were injured and three power engineers were killed by shelling at the power plants.”

Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko said power generation and transmission facilities were damaged in six regions.

“The enemy does not give up his plans to deprive the Ukrainians of the light. The economical use of electricity is each of us’s contribution to victory. Responsible consumption in the morning and evening hours is particularly important,” said Galushchenko.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a statement that “all necessary services are already deployed on the ground to eliminate the consequences of terror.”

“The whole world must clearly understand who is who. The whole world has no right to give Nazism another chance,” he added.

The rocket fire comes as Kiev continues to launch drone attacks on Russia’s oil infrastructure and hamper the country’s gasoline production. Olha Stefanishyna, a Ukrainian deputy prime minister, said in March that Russian oil refineries were legitimate military targets for Ukraine.

The independent Russian online news agency Moscow Times reported on Wednesday that there have been at least 20 attacks on Russian refineries and oil depots in the past four months.

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