The Russian military has been widely accused of targeting civilians after dozens of missiles indiscriminately rained down on major Ukrainian cities on Monday, blacking out power to many.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shot a video in Kyiv minutes after the missiles stopped, declaring, “We are dealing with terrorists.” Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said the city of Kyiv was intentionally shutting down supplies for repairs, but widespread blackouts and water cuts were reported in Kyiv and elsewhere after the attacks.
Footage of the Russian attack shows civilians fleeing as missiles land around them, some hitting infrastructure, some hitting playgrounds and parks.
The missiles also hit Lviv, Kharkov, Dnipro and at least 11 other cities, and air raid sirens blared across Ukraine for four hours straight.
Multiple explosions rock eastern Ukraine city of Kharkov
“They have two targets: energy infrastructure and people,” Zelensky said. “They want [sow] Panic and chaos, destroying our energy system. Ukraine existed before this enemy appeared, and Ukraine will appear after it.”
Putin accuses Ukraine of ‘terrorism’ over Crimean bridge explosion
The missile strikes come after months of relative calm in Kyiv and other major Ukrainian cities. Ukrainian forces scored key victories throughout his September, pushing Russian forces into territory that Putin claims to annex.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov has condemned the attack as a war crime and called on Western powers to supply Ukraine with more air defense systems.
“Our enemies believe that missile strikes are an effective means of intimidation, but they are not. It is a war crime,” Reznikov wrote on Twitter. “Civilians are dead and wounded. Ukraine must bring the missile terrorists to justice with the help of the civilized world. And [we] I’ll do it. ”
“The best response to Russian missile terrorism is the supply of anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems to Ukraine – protect Ukraine’s skies! This protects our cities and people. This protects the future of Europe. Evil must be punished,” he added.
The Ukrainian aggression came to the fore this weekend with the bombing of the Kerch Bridge linking Russia and Crimea.
This bridge is a major thoroughfare that allows the Russian army to transport weapons and supplies to Ukraine. Putin denounced the bombing as “terrorism” shortly after the attack, which may have contributed to the escalation of Monday’s Russian missile strike.
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In his speech on Monday, Putin said, “This morning, a large-scale, high-precision attack was carried out against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, military command and communications.” ‘s response will be severe and appropriate.”