Russia carried out several attacks on Ukrainian cities late on October 18, using guided bombs that struck residential areas in at least one of the cities hit, Ukrainian officials said.
Kharkiv, Sumy, and Zaporizhzhya were among the cities targeted by guided bombs dropped by Russian fighter jets, according to Ukrainian air defense forces. In the city of Lozova in the Kharkiv region, four people were injured in a residential area, the State Emergency Service reported.
Russian drones were also spotted over Chernihiv and Dnipropetrovsk. Although details about possible casualties were not available, an energy facility in Chernihiv was hit, causing a power outage for around 17,000 customers in the north of the country, according to the regional energy supplier.
Additionally, Russia carried out more than 10 strikes overnight on Chuhuiv, located in Ukraine’s eastern Kharkiv region. Mayor Halyna Minayeva stated on Facebook that almost all of the town’s districts were paralyzed. Energy suppliers will not be able to begin restoring power until the damage has been fully assessed.
In the Zaporizhzhya region, Governor Ivan Fedorov reported fires resulting from Russian attacks during the night but confirmed that no one was injured.
Russia’s relentless night-time strikes frequently target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. These attacks are designed to knock out heating and electricity for Ukrainian civilians as winter approaches, aiming to break their morale.
Meanwhile, in Moscow, the Russian Defense Ministry announced on October 18 that its forces had shot down 41 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory and the Black Sea. Three of these drones were reportedly shot down over the Moscow region.
The fighting occurred a day after U.S. President Donald Trump welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Washington for talks aimed at ending the war. Zelenskyy met with Trump at the White House, hoping to secure support for providing Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles. However, Trump gave no indication that he backed the idea.
Instead, Trump urged both Russia and Ukraine to immediately cease fighting, stating that enough blood had been shed. “They should stop where they are,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Let both claim Victory, let History decide!” He emphasized that it was time to stop the killing and make a deal.
With reporting by dpa.
https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-war-strikes-trump-zelenskyy/33563571.html
