Numerous killed in massive Russian strikes on Ukraine

By Stefan J. Bos

Loud blasts reverberate throughout Ukraine's capital Kyiv. In central Kyiv, vehicles are on fire. A high-rise complex housing offices of tech giant Samsung near the city's main train station is among other sites suffering severe damage.

This was the first time Kyiv hit for months, and the explosions appeared more central than Russian strikes earlier in the war. Most dead and wounded were here in the center.

Besides Kyiv, at least four other Ukrainian cities were targeted by as many as 75 long-range missiles and shelling, including Lviv, Ternopil, Zaporizhzhia, and Dnipro.

Residents were running for cover. "I am so shocked because I've just seen a rocket fly," a girl said. "And I felt it."

Her words were interrupted as a missile appeared to hit a target. She narrowly escaped the blast unharmed, shouting in shock.  

In Moscow, Russian President Putin defended the coordinated strikes saying they were in response to Saturday's attack on the Kerch bridge.

The now-damaged bridge links Russia with the Crimea peninsula, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014. "Leaving such crimes without a response is simply impossible," President Putin told the nation in televised remarks.

He explained that at the proposal of Russia's Ministry of Defense and the general staff, Moscow launched long-range missile attacks from the sea and land. "They were aimed at Ukraine's energy, military, and communications infrastructure."

Putin warned: "If attempts continue to carry out terrorist acts on our territory, Russia's responses will be harsh and in their scale correspond to the level of threats created for the Russian Federation. No one should have any doubt about that."

The strikes across Ukraine on Monday morning threatened to escalate a war that had already killed and injured tens of thousands of people since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the rush hour attacks appeared to have been deliberately timed to kill people and knock out electricity.

Kyiv says 11 primary infrastructure targets were hit in eight regions, leaving swathes of the country with no power, water, or heat ahead of winter.