Russia launched a drone and missile attack on the southeastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia overnight, killing one person, injuring 31 others and leaving tens of thousands without electricity or heat, Reuters reported on January 23, citing local officials.
The attack destroyed an energy facility and left more than 20,000 residents without power and about 17,000 without heating, according to Governor Ivan Fedorov.
He said Russian forces first attacked the city with drones, then launched ballistic missiles. As a result of the attack, the airstrike alert in the city lasted more than six hours.
Early on January 23, police and rescue workers searched through the rubble of a destroyed apartment building and helped evacuate elderly residents. According to Governor Fedorov, one building was destroyed and 30 others were damaged.
Zaporizhzhia, a strategic industrial city near the front lines, was frequently attacked by the Russian army.
Ukraine’s air force said Russia fired four ballistic missiles at the city. The attack on Zaporizhzhia was part of a larger Russian attack on Ukraine overnight, involving 92 drones. Ukrainian air defenses shot down 57 drones and 27 without trace.
Russia has been conducting regular airstrikes on Ukrainian towns and cities near the frontline, particularly targeting Ukraine’s energy grid. On January 22, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said that Russian forces had attacked Ukraine’s energy system 1,200 times since 2022.
Reporting from Kiev, Al Jazeera's Imran Khan said Zaporizhzhia had come under heavy fire in the past 24 hours, with an estimated 361 attacks, including four ballistic missiles. "The real concern now is people without electricity. It's the middle of winter," he said.
Meanwhile, pro-Russian officials in the partly Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia region said at least four Ukrainian drones attacked Energodar, a city whose residents mainly work at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which is currently under Russian control.
Two power substations near Energodar were attacked. There were no injuries and no other details about the damage near Europe's largest nuclear power plant.
Russia has controlled Europe's largest nuclear power plant, which has six reactors, since the early days of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Since then, each side has accused the other of attacking the nuclear facility.
