Speed Reads

Targeted Attacks

Russian drone strikes leave thousands of Ukrainians without power and water

The Russian bombardment of Ukraine continued Tuesday, as drone strikes targeting power stations and water supplies cut off thousands of Ukrainians from key resources. 

The attacks are part of a Russian strategy to plunge Ukraine into chaos and power shortages as winter approaches. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tweeted that 30 percent of his country's power stations were destroyed. 

Russia has started hitting civilian targets across Ukraine with so-called "kamikaze" drones that nosedive directly into their targets, causing significant destruction. These attacks are unlikely to stop anytime soon, as Iran reportedly agreed to send Russia another slate of surface-to-surface missiles and drones. 

The attacks have led to power outages across the country, with The Associated Press reporting of some airstrikes "reaching far into the country and damaging key facilities, sometimes faster than they can be repaired."

The latest Ukrainian city to be shelled Tuesday was Zhytomyr, around 85 miles west of Ukraine's capital, Kyiv. The area houses military bases and industrial areas, and Zhytomyr's mayor told AP that all 250,000 people in the city had initially lost power. Despite efforts to restore electricity, at least 150,000 reportedly remained in the dark. 

Kyiv itself also saw significant damage, after drone strikes on a pair of power facilities killed four people and left 50,000 people without power, city officials said. 

Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said more than 100 Iranian-made kamikaze drones have hit targets in the past week alone.