Ukraine, Kiev under attack. German minister takes shelter in bomb shelter

At least eight civilians were killed and 67 wounded in the last 24 hours following a series of Russian attacks on several regions of Ukraine, local authorities reported, as reported by the Kiev Independent. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russia launched nine Iskander-M ballistic missiles from the Rostov and Kursk regions, together with 62 attack drones and Shahed-type diversions. Ukrainian air defences shot down 50 of them, but 12 drones and five missiles hit four locations. The most serious situation is in the Kherson region, where three people died and 29 were wounded, including three children, as a result of shelling and drones. 29 residential buildings were hit, reported Governor Oleksandr Prokudin.

Explosions and fires are being recorded in Kiev, according to the capital's mayor, Vitali Klitschko, and Tymur Tkachenko, the head of the city's military administration. 'The city is under ballistic attack,' the first citizen says on Telegram, adding that one person was injured in the Dnipro district. Firefighters went to the district to check the damage from the explosions. Tkachenko urges citizens to stay in shelters.

The number of injured, according to Tkachenko, has risen to eight, all in Kiev. According to initial reports, the attack caused broken windows, damaged cars and a crater in the courtyard of a residential building. However, rescue workers are still working to check for other problems in the Ukrainian capital

Russian drone and missile attacks have killed at least two people and wounded more than a dozen in several regions of Ukraine, according to local authorities. In Dnipropetrovsk, the head of the regional military administration, Vladyslav Gaivanenko, said on Telegram that two people were killed and seven others wounded in missile and drone attacks.

During the Russian airstrike on Kiev, German Economy Minister Katherina Reiche was also forced to take refuge in the air raid shelter overnight. It was a distressing experience, but unfortunately part of the sad everyday life of Ukrainians, Reiche told a press conference. "It showed me once again clearly that Russia's attacks on the Ukrainian population are aimed at wearing them down," she added. Reiche arrived in Ukraine on Friday with a business delegation for a multi-day visit. Attacks on the electricity and heat grid just before the start of the heating season pose a threat, said the hard-line politician, who has promised to help Ukraine rebuild its destroyed energy infrastructure.