Air raid sirens sounded in several Ukrainian regions early on Monday morning, according to air raid data from the country Ministry of Digital Transformation. Air raid warnings were in effect in the Ukrainian regions of Kirovohrad, Kharkiv, Cherkasy, Poltava, Dnipropetrovsk, as well as the Ukraine-controlled part of Zaporizhzhia region at around 02:00 GMT on Monday. As of 07:13 a.m. local time on Monday (04:13 GMT), air raid warnings were in effect in the Kharkiv, Poltava, and Dnipropetrovsk regions. Precision strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure have been carried out by Russia since October 10 two days after the terrorist attack on the Crimean Bridge. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on November 1 that about 40% of Ukraine energy infrastructure had been damaged as a result of these strikes, leading to mass blackouts throughout the country.

Ukraine has introduced rolling blackouts to repair the energy grid ahead of winter. Russian President Vladimir Putin told Russia Security Council on October 10 that Russia had launched retaliatory strikes using precision-guided weapons against Ukrainian infrastructure, in response to the crimes committed by Kiev against the Russian civilian infrastructure. Putin condemned the bombing of the Kerch Strait Bridge, also known as the Crimean Bridge, that took place on October 8, saying that such a terror act cannot be left without retaliation. One exception is the Crimea region, which has been under illegal Russian occupation since 2014, where no reports have emerged of air alerts. Air raid alarms are given by local authorities in Ukraine on a daily basis due to possible missile and drone strikes which have recently targeted civilian and energy infrastructures.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP