Russian strikes cut power in Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv

Overnight Russian missile and drone strikes have caused power cuts in large parts of Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv.

Nine people were injured while residents in eastern districts were plunged into darkness and faced disruption to water supplies, the city’s mayor Vitali Klitschko said.

Meanwhile, a seven-year-old child was killed in a separate Russian drone strike in the Zaporizhzhia area in the country’s south-east, according to the Ukrainian regional head.

Moscow has escalated attacks on energy facilities over recent weeks, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of attempting to “create chaos and apply psychological pressure”.

Ukraine’s Energy Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk said Russia was “inflicting a massive strike” on facilities around the country overnight on Thursday, adding that repair crews were working to restore power.

A wave of strikes hit energy infrastructure and apartment buildings in Kyiv.

Five out of the nine people injured in the strikes on the capital have been taken to hospital, Klitschko said.

Images of firefighters putting out blazes at a 10-storey building have been released by Ukraine’s state emergency services.

Ivan Fedorov, Zaporizhzhia’s regional head, said the city came under intense attacks overnight. A seven-year-old child died and three other people were injured.

The attacks follow nights of air raids in the region, parts of which Russia currently controls.

All of Ukraine is on alert for hypersonic Kinzhal missile strikes, which are more difficult to detect.

Zelensky told reporters on Thursday that Russia was intentionally trying to demolish the country’s energy grid, with attacks already disrupting gas facilities.

He said energy workers and authorities were bracing for further attacks.