Russian Strikes Kill 8 in Ukraine Amid Ongoing Offensive

Greenwatch Desk Conflicts 2025-02-01, 10:57pm

At least eight people were killed overnight as Russian drone and missile attacks targeted towns and cities across Ukraine, local officials reported Saturday. Meanwhile, Russian forces continued their slow but steady advance in the eastern regions of the country.

A Russian missile strike hit an apartment building in the city of Poltava, killing at least seven people and injuring 14, including three children, according to Ukraine's Interior Ministry. The attack caused part of the five-story building to collapse, trapping residents inside. Rescue teams managed to save 22 people, and the region’s acting governor, Volodymyr Kohut, announced three days of mourning for the victims.

In the Kharkiv region, a 60-year-old woman was killed by falling debris from a downed drone, local officials reported.

As the bombardment continued, Russian forces pressed their months-long campaign to capture key Donetsk strongholds, including Pokrovsk and Chasiv Yar, while fighting through rural areas. Russia’s Ministry of Defense confirmed the capture of Krymske, a suburb north of the contested town of Toretsk, which analysts predict Russia will soon fully control.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the attacks, calling for more international support in the form of air defense systems to counter Russia's continued assaults. "Every act of terror proves the need for greater support," he wrote on social media.

In southern Ukraine, the historic city of Odesa was also struck by Russian missiles, injuring seven people and damaging the city’s UNESCO-listed center, which includes the 19th-century opera house. Norwegian diplomats were reportedly near the site during the attack, according to local officials.

The ongoing conflict, now in its third year, has led to over 10,000 civilian deaths in Ukraine, with many people enduring severe hardships due to Russian attacks on the country’s power grid. Saturday’s missile strikes caused power outages in seven Ukrainian regions, including Poltava.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces launched counterattacks, with air defenses intercepting nine drones in Russia’s Bryansk, Belgorod, and Saratov regions, according to Russia’s Ministry of Defense.