French media: Russian air strike in Ukraine kills 4 and injures 20; Zelenskyy calls on allies to protect Ukrainian airspace
On Saturday, hours after a Russian bombing in Ukraine killed four people and injured about 20, President Zelenskyy once again called on partners to assist Ukraine in protecting its airspace.
The day before, Zelenskyy and his allies held a meeting in London to discuss the provision of long-range weapons and air defense systems to Kyiv.
Ukrainian President said on social media: "The systems our partners have can help Ukraine defend against ballistic missiles used in 'almost all of Russia's attacks'."
Zelenskyy said he was especially looking forward to the Patriot system, an expensive air defense weapon designed by the United States, which has strong defensive capabilities against such Russian missiles.
Between Friday and Saturday night, Russia launched "nine Iskander-M ballistic missiles" and "64 attack drones" and other types of drones, according to the Ukrainian Air Force, which said it had shot down 50 drones and four missiles.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on social media that the missile attacks by Russia killed two people and injured twelve in the capital Kyiv.
At around 4 a.m. today, AFP reporter in Kyiv heard the distinctive whistling of missiles and huge explosions.
According to municipal authorities, they also saw firefighters fighting a fire that devoured a warehouse, with fires breaking out in two neighborhoods of the capital.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs said on social media that the "Petro Pavlivska community in Dnipro-Odessa region was hit by multiple missile attacks, one rescuer was killed and another injured".
The ministry said that in the same area, "a woman was also killed by the explosion, seven people were injured," and explained that "fire trucks, residential buildings and stores were damaged".
The Russian Defense Ministry claimed that its targets were "enterprises of the Ukrainian military-industrial complex, as well as energy infrastructure that ensures their operation".
With the temperature dropping, Russia has increased its attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, causing concerns among Ukrainians about facing a severe winter.
President Zelenskyy said on Saturday that since the beginning of the year, Russia has launched "about 770 ballistic missiles" and more than 50 "Khinzal" hypersonic missiles toward Ukraine, which are difficult for air defense systems to intercept.
Source: rfi
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1846972598261836/
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