Russian drones target Ukrainian infrastructure, damaging solar plant

Overnight Russian drone attacks damaged residential buildings and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, including a solar power plant in the Odessa region, authorities said on Sunday.

Russia deployed an Iskander missile and 176 drones, the Ukrainian Air Force announced, noting that it either shot down or disabled 139 drones with radio jamming. The remaining 37 hit at 14 different locations, it said.

The north-eastern Sumy region was hit hard, with an 86-year-old woman injured and civilian infrastructure damaged by Russian attacks, the regional civil protection agency said. Air raid sirens sounded for a good 18 hours within the last 24 hours in the region.

The southern region of Odessa was also affected as Russian forces once again targeted energy infrastructure, Governor Oleh Kiper said.

A solar power plant was damaged, he wrote on Telegram. Pictures showed a large number of fallen, shattered and perforated solar panels.

Since the start of the war in February 2022, Russia has been systematically attacking its neighbour's civilian infrastructure.

Moscow justifies the tactic by saying that the electricity generated in energy plants is used by the Ukrainian arms industry.

Ukrainians are suffering greatly from frequent power cuts, and in some cases water supplies and heating are also failing.

Kiev is now also targeting the Russian energy industry, primarily to disrupt the military's fuel supply. However, the damage is disproportionate to the extent of destruction caused by Russia.