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ConflictsUkraine

Russia launches new aerial assault across Ukraine

February 1, 2025

Russia unleashed another large barrage of missiles and drones against Ukraine on Saturday. Russia also said it captured more ground in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region.

Rescuers work at the site of an apartment building hit by a Russian missile strike in Poltava, Ukraine on February 1, 2025
Firefighters were searching through the rubble of the partially collapsed apartment block in Poltava in central UkraineImage: Sofiia Gatilova/REUTERS

The Ukrainian Air Force said Russia launched around 46 missiles and 123 drones on several regions Saturday in an overnight attack that killed at least eight people.

The Ukrainian Interior Ministry said Russia struck a residential building in the city of Poltava, which is about 120 kilometers (almost 75 miles) from the Russian border, killing at least four people and injuring at least 10 others.

The ministry posted pictures on Telegram that show the floors of the building smashed and smoke rising from it. 

Firefighters at work in Poltava after a Russia assault overnight Image: Sofiia Gatilova/REUTERS
At least 17 other buildings were damaged in PoltavaImage: Sofiia Gatilova/REUTERS

Poltava region's acting governor said some 21 people were rescued from the building and firefighters remain at the site. Other buildings were damaged too.

Ukrainian officials added there was damage in the city of Zaporizhzhia in the southeast, Kharkiv and Sumy regions in the northeast, and Khmelnytskyi in the west.

Zelenskyy says Saturday attack is evidence that Ukraine needs more support

"Last night Russia attacked our cities using various types of weapons: missiles, attack drones, and aerial bombs," President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, adding damage was caused in six regions.

"Each such terrorist attack proves that we need more support in defending ourselves against Russian terror. Every air defense system, every anti-missile weapon, saves lives," he wrote on Telegram.

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Russia missile attack on center of Odesa reportedly destroyed historic orchestra hall

A Russian missile attack on the center of southern Ukraine's port city of Odesa, a UNESCO world heritage site, on Friday, also seriously damaged several buildings.

The mayor of Odesa said Saturday that the attack yesterday damaged the entrance, windows and interior of the historic Philharmonic Hall.

Russia continues rapid advance in Donetsk

Meanwhile, Russia said it captured the strategic hilltop city of Toretsk in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region after heavy fighting there for about two months.

The fall of the city comes after Russian forces took control of several towns and villages in the region in recent months.

Analysts say Moscow has been advancing in Donetsk at its fastest pace since 2022, rapidly capturing more ground by breaking through Ukrainian positions weakened by troop shortages. 

rm/wd (Reuters, AP) 

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