A barrage of over 80 Russian missiles hit Ukraine on Thursday, striking residential buildings and knocking a nuclear plant off of the power grid, according to the Associated Press (AP).
The temporary disconnect of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant from the power grid lasted for a few hours and posed a risk to the plant’s cooling systems, which are reliant upon continuous electricity and necessary in order to avoid meltdowns, AP reported. Six deaths occurred as a result of the missile strike, according to the outlet.
The barrage stretched across Ukraine to include western portions of the country. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia launched the attack in an attempt “to intimidate Ukrainians again,” according to AP.
Kyiv resident Liudmyla described how “glass shattered on the balconies and windows” during the strikes as the city experienced a night alert that lasted seven hours, Reuters reported.
Russia fired a huge wave of missiles across Ukraine as people slept, killing at least six civilians and knocking out power in an attack Kyiv said included six Kinzhal hypersonic cruise missiles, one of Moscow’s most valuable weapons https://t.co/gAcQCHmbnz pic.twitter.com/KXe3LEgZbi
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 9, 2023
The Russian Defense Ministry maintained the attack constituted a response to an alleged Ukrainian incursion into the Russian region of Bryansk. Ukraine has denied any participation in the purported incursion, according to AP.
Ukrainian military analyst Oleh Zhdanov told AP the strikes served the chief purpose of targeting “the nerves of the civilian population of Ukraine.” (RELATED: McCarthy Declines Zelenskyy’s Invite To Visit Ukraine)
Ukraine accused Russia of “nuclear terrorism” in September after a Russian missile strike landed less than a mile away from the South Ukraine Nuclear Power Plant, posing a threat to Ukrainian electricity generation and transmission capabilities.