At least 13 regions of Ukraine came under attack in a strike that continued overnight and into the morning. According to the Air Force, radio-technical troops detected and tracked 673 air attack weapons — 38 missiles and 635 UAVs of various types. In total, 621 enemy targets were destroyed or suppressed.
Consequences
The primary target of the attack was Ukraine’s energy sector. Rivne, Ternopil, and Khmelnytskyi regions were left almost completely without power.
The attack had lethal consequences. The Russians struck the Zhytomyr region, where a four-year-old child was killed, and five others were injured. In the Vyshhorod district of the Kyiv region, a private two-story house caught fire as a result of the attack, a woman born in 1949 later died. In Kyiv itself, debris from a UAV injured five people, including a 16-year-old child;. Russian forces also targeted the city of Shepetivka In the Khmelnytskyi region, killing one person.
Due to severe damage to thermal power plant equipment and electricity networks across the country, emergency power outage schedules were introduced. Ukrainian nuclear power plants were forced to reduce generation capacity. In Lviv, electric transport was limited due to voltage drops, while Shostka and Burshtyn experienced disruptions to heating and hot water supply.
Infrastructure damage was widespread. The residential sector suffered significant losses: 122 private houses and a civilian dry cargo vessel were damaged in the Odesa region; 14 houses were damaged in the Vinnytsia region; and additional destruction was recorded in Rivne, Chernihiv, and Sumy regions.
Following the strikes near Ukraine’s western border, Poland and its allies deployed aircraft to secure NATO airspace. West of Ukraine became one of the primary targets of the attack.
Energy company DTEK reported damage to thermal power plant equipment, marking the seventh massive attack on its facilities since October.
Symbolism of terror and reactions
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized the symbolic nature of the strike, noting that it was carried out shortly before Christmas:
This Russian strike sends a very clear signal about Russia’s priorities. It was launched before Christmas, when people want to be with their families, at home, safe and sound. It was launched in the midst of negotiations aimed at ending this war. Putin cannot come to terms with the fact that the killing must stop.
It is also important to recall that Russia celebrates Christmas 14 days later, making the timing particularly cynical from the perspective of the civilized world. Ukrainian prisoners of war have testified that Russian forces deliberately starved them on this day.
Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna reacted to the attack on X:
During a holiday season meant to bring people together in celebration, reflection, and goodwill, Russia continues to escalate its attacks against Ukraine, striking energy infrastructure and deliberately endangering innocent civilians who are simply trying to spend time with their families.
This must stop. The international community’s pressure on Russia must not only be maintained but intensified.
These crimes will not go unanswered.
Conclusion
This attack once again demonstrates that Russia neither seeks to stop nor freeze the war, and is not prepared for any form of winter holiday truce. The terror remains largely unpunished, and amid the scaling up of Russian weapons production, this winter has become the most difficult for Ukraine. The timing was cynical, and the chaotic, large-scale launches claimed the lives of innocent civilians across the country.
