“Large-scale” rocket attack hits targets across Ukraine, amid fears of burying civilians alive under rubble and power outages in several cities

Russia today launched the latest in a series of devastating missile salvos against Ukraine, destroying vital infrastructure and burying civilians under the rubble.

Almost every major city was targeted in Friday’s attack, with explosions reported in the capital Kyiv, the second-largest city Kharkiv and Kryvyi Rih – in the center of the country – which hit an apartment building with people said to be trapped .

According to initial reports, two people were killed and eight others, including a three-year-old boy and a seven-year-old girl, were injured in the blast. Several people, including a small child, may be buried in the building.

Russia has targeted Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure for weeks after failing to achieve victory on the battlefield, amounting to a war crime. The aim is to break the will of the Ukrainians to continue the war and unleash a new refugee crisis.

A woman cries outside an apartment building destroyed by a Russian missile strike that killed at least two people

Firefighters put out a fire caused by a Russian missile strike that hit an apartment building in the town of Kryvyi Rih on Friday.

Vinnytsia in west-central Ukraine, the central city of Poltava, the southern port hub of Odessa and the northern Sumy region were also attacked – with power outages and internet outages.

Andrii Osadchuk, a Ukrainian MP, said about 70 rockets were fired on Friday.

About 40 of these were aimed at Kiev alone, according to independent Kiev defense reporter Illia Ponomarenko, of which 37 were reportedly shot down.

Yuriy Ihnat, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Air Force, said Russian nuclear-capable TU-95 bombers fired Kh-101 and Kh-555 cruise missiles at Ukrainian cities from over Russian territory.

Kaliber missiles were also launched from warships and submarines in the Black Sea, and Tu-22 bombers and Su-35 jets fired Kh-59 cruise missiles.

The attack also involved S-300 missiles, which are traditionally used for air defense but can also hit ground targets, he said.

“They want to destroy and enslave us. But we will not give up. We will persevere,” said Lidiya Vasilieva, 53, as she made her way to an emergency shelter near a train station in Kiev.

“I want the war to be over soon. But I am prepared to wait as long as necessary,” she said.

Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the president’s office, said a residential building was hit in downtown Kryvyi Rih and people may be trapped under the rubble.

There were no immediate reports of casualties and it was unclear exactly what critical infrastructure was hit.

“Do not ignore air raid warnings, stay in shelters,” Tymoshenko wrote on the messaging app Telegram.

Firefighters from the Ukrainian State Rescue Service work on the building destroyed by a Russian attack in Kryvyi Rih

At least 70 rockets were fired at Ukraine in Russia’s barrage, with at least one hitting the town of Kryvyi Rih (pictured).

The ruins of a hotel in the Ukrainian city of Kherson are photographed after Russia fired rockets at almost every major city in the country

Debris lies on the street outside the ruins of a former hotel in the Ukrainian city of Kherson after it was hit by Russian missiles

Firefighters evacuate a woman from the ruins of a building in the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih after it was hit by a Russian missile

Ambulance crews work at an apartment building in Ukraine’s Kryvyi Rih after a Russian missile attack is believed to have killed two people

Officials in the Zaporizhia region of southeastern Ukraine have warned residents to expect more power outages as engineers try to repair damage caused by the Russian strikes.

“We know about 15 Russian missile attacks (in the region),” Zaporizhia regional governor Oleksandr Starukh wrote on Telegram. “We ask citizens to prepare for possible temporary restrictions on the repair of damaged infrastructure.”

Energy group DTEK said it was already forcing blackouts in Kiev to allow for repairs.

Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February, has been attacking Ukraine’s energy infrastructure since October, causing repeated blackouts across the country as winter sets in.

Moscow considers the attacks on the basic infrastructure to be militarily legitimate. Ukraine has labeled attacks aimed at harming civilians as war crimes.

Kiev has asked its Western allies to send better air defense systems to repel the attacks, which have occurred almost weekly since October.

Joe Biden is believed to be about to send Patriot missile defense systems to Ukraine, in addition to the NASAMS and Iris-T systems already delivered.

Patriots are one of the most effective anti-missile batteries in use today, but they are difficult to operate and require a well-trained crew of about a dozen.

Russia launched another volley of missiles into Ukraine today, targeting virtually every major city and its key infrastructure (photo, Kyiv People’s Sanctuary).

Women watch the news on their mobile phones as civilians seek shelter at a metro station during an airstrike in central Kyiv

During an airstrike in central Kiev, civilians shelter in a subway station as Russians fire dozens of rockets at Ukraine’s critical infrastructure

America doesn’t have many either. There is currently only one Patriot battalion in Europe to defend Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany.

Other Western allies have similar problems and, although they can provide the weapons systems themselves, they do not have large stocks of ammunition for them.

But if Ukraine fails to defend both its citizens and its key infrastructure, Putin risks bombing the country into submission.

The hope in Moscow appears to be that destroying the Ukrainians’ will to fight or continued support from the West is now the fastest route to a peace deal favorable to Russia.

Experts fear that any deal would be used by Moscow to pause the war long enough to rearm, reinforce and resume the offensive.

People shelter in a subway station during massive Russian missile attacks in Kiev, Ukraine

People rest in the subway station that was used as an air raid shelter during a missile attack in Kiev

People rest in a subway station used as an air raid shelter during a missile attack in Kiev

A police officer inspects part of a Russian cruise missile fired over the capital Kiev on Friday, amid fresh attacks on Ukraine’s infrastructure