Russian airstrikes in several Ukrainian regions on Saturday killed nine people, injured dozens and damaged residential buildings and infrastructure across the country, local officials said.
The civilian death toll has risen sharply in Ukraine over the past two months as Russia steps up attacks on power plants and other infrastructure. Ukraine has hit energy facilities and warehouses in distant parts of Russia, and both sides have targeted each other's shipping.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, writing on Telegram, said Russia had deployed nearly 500 drones against Ukrainian targets since early morning.
“Basically, the Russians have expanded the war away from the front, where they have no success, into the economy, and their tactics are as basic as it gets: destroying every site that could help people cope with the conditions of war,” Zelensky wrote.
“Russia wants to kill the Ukrainian economy and break our resistance,” Zelensky added.
