“Massive” strikes on power plants in Ukraine, refineries targeted in Russia

Ukraine was facing the damage of a new "massive" attack on Saturday. Russian missile attack against its energy infrastructure, which damaged four thermal power plants and caused power cuts, while kyiv targeted two refineries in Russia with drones.

Russia has carried out several waves of destructive attacks against Ukraine's power plants and power grid in recent weeks, forcing authorities to put in place restrictions on consumption and import power from the EU . kyiv is asking the West for Patriot batteries to protect itself from these strikes.

“The enemy has once again attacked the country's energy infrastructure”, wrote on Facebook Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko, citing “damage” to installations in the regions of Dnipropetrovsk (central-east), Ivano-Frankivsk and Lviv (West).

These last two regions are close to the borders of the European Union and located hundreds of kilometers from the front lines.

According to the Ukrainian army, which spoke of a “massive” attack, 34 missiles targeted the country, 21 of which were shot down.

“We managed to shoot down some. But the world has every possibility to help bring down all Russian missiles and drones, President Volodymyr Zelensky reacted in a message, calling for anti-aircraft systems and weapons to be delivered to his country “rapidly”. sufficient quantity and quality”.

After a bombing attributed by local authorities to a Ukrainian strike in Donestk in Ukraine, in a zone controlled by Russia, April 26, 2024 © AFP – –

The private Ukrainian operator DTEK indicated that four of its thermal power plants had been “seriously damaged” by the nighttime strikes.

The operator public Ukrenergo explained that it had disconnected its main power line in the west of the country as a preventive measure and once again asked all Ukrainian users to limit their electricity consumption.

– Electricity rationing –

“We ask all consumers to use electricity sparingly,” according to a statement from Ukrenergo. “The industry is being asked to maximize electricity imports and use alternative sources.”

In the western Lviv region, Governor Maksym Kozytsky called on Telegram residents to refrain from using equipment that consumes a lot of electricity at the end of the day and early evening.

A Ukrainian soldier walks past an army recruitment poster in kyiv on April 23, 2024. © AFP – Sergei SUPINSKY

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk indicated on X that one of the missiles fired by Russia during the night had fallen in Ukraine “15 kilometers” from the Polish border.

Further Russian bombings killed two people and injured 15 others.

One person died and five were injured in the Kharkiv region (north-east). Another was killed and eight injured in a bombing in the Kherson region (south), according to Ukrainian authorities.

Two people were also injured in Kryvyï Rig ( east-central).

– Refinery on fire –

Ukraine, for its part, launched a massive drone attack overnight on the southern Russian region of Krasnodar.

According to a Ukrainian defense source to AFP , drones struck two oil refineries and a military air base in this region located east of the Crimean peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014.

” “Ukrainian drones hit the atmospheric distillation columns of the Ilsky and Slavyansk refineries”, according to this source, calling them “key technological installations”.

After a missile attack on Kharkiv in Ukraine, April 27, 2024 © AFP – SERGEY BOBOK

Russian officials in the Krasnodar region reported a fire at the Slavyansk-on-Kuban refinery. The latter had to stop its activity, Russian state media reported, citing a representative of the operator.

Photos and videos circulating on social networks show a large fire raging overnight at the site after a series of explosions.

The Russian Defense Ministry announced earlier Saturday that 68 Ukrainian drones had been intercepted during the night, including 66 above the Krasnodar region and two others in the Crimean peninsula, annexed in 2014.

In the Russian region of Belgorod, border of Ukraine and regularly targeted, five people were injured when a Ukrainian drone fell on a road in a village a few kilometers from Ukraine, announced Governor Viatcheslav Gladkov.

Ukraine has repeatedly targeted refineries and oil depots in Russia in recent months. Russian strikes on Ukraine's power grid are being carried out in retaliation for these attacks, according to Moscow.

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