Russia, Ukraine trade accusations over overnight airstrikes, killing 9

Russia and Ukraine on Wednesday traded accusations concerning overnight airstrikes that killed at least nine people.

The Kyiv City Military Administration said in a statement on Telegram that the Ukrainian capital was attacked by Russia with ballistic missiles overnight, with damage from the strikes recorded in two districts of the city.

"Tragically, two men were killed in the enemy shelling… In the Podilskyi district, a missile struck a non-residential building, causing a fire," the statement said.

It further said that a missile strike ignited a fire at a garage cooperative in Kyiv's Darnytskyi district, noting that the blaze had been extinguished, though damage occurred.

"Debris also fell in an open area at a separate location," it added.

In the Dnipropetrovsk region, Governor Oleksandr Hanzha said two people were injured in strikes that damaged an industrial enterprise, apartment buildings and a sports club in the regional capital.

Chernihiv Governor Vyacheslav Chaus said at least five people were killed and 25 others injured after a missile strike on an apartment building in the city of Pryluky, while Poltava Governor Vitaliy Dyakivnych said two people were killed and seven others injured in his region.

Zaporizhzhia Governor Mykhailo Semikin also said a transport infrastructure facility in the regional capital was hit by an overnight strike, noting that traffic restrictions may be temporarily imposed on certain road sections due to the attack.

"One of the key targets was our energy infrastructure. The Russians wanted to strike painfully and demonstratively. This was one of the most vile strikes: 70 missiles in total, many of them ballistic, as well as 'shaheds.' Unfortunately, only some of them were shot down," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on US social media company X.

Describing the overnight strikes as a "birthday gift" to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Zelenskyy said ballistic missiles remain the greatest challenge for Ukraine and that air defense packages for Kyiv are a "vital necessity."

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed it launched a "massive strike" against Ukrainian military-industrial complex facilities in Kyiv and the Kyiv region, as well as in the Chernihiv, Kirovohrad, Dnipropetrovsk, Poltava, Kharkiv and Odesa regions.

The ministry also claimed that Russian air defenses downed 311 Ukrainian drones over 16 regions, as well as over the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov and Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014.

In Russia's border region of Belgorod, Governor Alexander Shuvaev said seven people were injured over the past 24 hours in three districts due to Ukrainian strikes.

In the Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, Russian-installed Horlivka Mayor Ivan Prikhodko said three people were injured in a Ukrainian drone attack.

Voronezh Governor Aleksandr Gusev said a power line was damaged in the southern part of his region due to falling debris, adding that several villages were temporarily without electricity and emergency services were working at the site.

Ukraine's Air Force claimed that its air defenses shot down 117 of 130 strike drones, as well as 44 ballistic and cruise missiles out of an unspecified number launched by Russia overnight.

Independent verification of the claims is difficult due to the ongoing war.

Moscow and Kyiv have ramped up strikes in recent months, targeting each other's logistics centers, ports and energy infrastructure.

They deny deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure, maintaining that the strikes are directed at military targets or facilities linked to military activities.