Ukraine said Russia launched a massive overnight and early-morning assault on the country’s infrastructure, targeting ports, energy facilities, transport networks and residential areas across at least 13 regions, as air raid sirens continued to sound on Wednesday.
Ukrainian officials said the attack involved at least 650 drones and more than three dozen missiles, marking one of the largest combined strikes in recent months.
In the Odesa region, a small dry cargo vessel was reportedly damaged while loading soybeans at a port facility. The ship, described by Ukrainian media as registered in Lebanon, was docked in the Odesa port complex when it was hit. Images circulating online showed fires burning onboard as firefighters worked to contain the blaze. No injuries were reported.
Odesa regional governor Oleh Kiper said the strikes caused damage to port infrastructure, energy facilities, transport assets, industrial sites and residential buildings. “There were no casualties reported in the region,” he said.
Deputy Prime Minister for the Restoration of Ukraine Oleksii Kuleba said civilian warehouses and critical energy infrastructure in the Odesa region were also hit. The Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority confirmed damage to infrastructure and administrative buildings at the port of Reni, another key Danube port.
The attacks come after an earlier Russian missile strike on the Odesa port complex and the city, which killed at least eight people and wounded 27 others. Ukrainian officials said some of the victims were passengers on a city bus that was struck during that attack.
Energy infrastructure remained a primary target. Ukraine’s largest private energy producer, DTEK, said one of its thermal power plants was damaged and taken offline. The Zaporizhzhia Steel Works also reported a loss of power, forcing an emergency shutdown of production.
Russia has also recently struck the port of Pivdennyi, where Ukrainian authorities reported a major fire in the port area. Around 30 storage tanks containing flour and vegetable oil were damaged in that incident.
Ukrainian media noted that speculation about a potential pause in Russian attacks during the Christmas season now appears increasingly unlikely, as strikes continue to intensify across the country.