On U.S. Election Day, Russia launched 17 ballistic missiles and 289 drones at Ukraine, according to Zelenskyy

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Russia launched a massive strike on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, firing 17 ballistic missiles, 59 cruise missiles, and 289 attack drones overnight. The head of state emphasized that it is particularly telling that the attack took place on November 3, the day of the U.S. congressional elections.

According to the president, the Russian attack was planned in advance and primarily targeted critical infrastructure. The main target was Ukraine’s energy system—power generation facilities and electrical substations.

“The Russians launched a complex, massive strike last night, calculated primarily against critical infrastructure. And the main targets were the energy sector, power generation facilities, and substations in the Odesa, Cherkasy, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Chernivtsi, Chernihiv, and Rivne regions. Emergency and rolling blackouts are ongoing in many cities and communities,” Zelenskyy wrote.

As a result of the attack, emergency and rolling blackouts were implemented in a number of regions.

Separately, the president reported a strike on a medical facility in Kharkiv. According to him, Russian troops attacked the city clinical hospital, where patients were being treated.

“In Kharkiv, the Russians struck the city clinical hospital directly. Seventy-three people were injured, and the cardiology ward, where patients were being treated, was damaged,” the president noted.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy also reported that the rescue operation in Komyshuvakha, Zaporizhzhia Oblast—which began the day before—is continuing.

“Unfortunately, the death toll has risen. Twenty-nine people were killed by Russia. My condolences to their families and loved ones. Five were wounded. There are still people trapped under the rubble. Work continues as much as the security situation allows: there is a threat of repeated Russian strikes, as they always do in such a cowardly manner,” Zelenskyy stated.

The head of state noted that the massive shelling of Ukraine took place on the day of the U.S. congressional elections. He called on the United States not to ignore Russia’s actions and to step up assistance to Ukraine to protect against airstrikes.

“It is very telling that all of this happened on the day of the U.S. congressional elections. The Russians believe that America will not notice this signal of theirs. But we must take notice and stop this terror. We must help Ukraine defend its skies; otherwise, Russia will never stop its missile strikes. We must help build peace honestly and reliably, and America can do this. Thank you to everyone who will not remain silent about this Russian attack. Thank you to everyone who supports the defense of Ukraine,” Zelenskyy emphasized.

The president also reported that the air raid alert was still in effect and that the threat of new missile and drone attacks persisted.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote about this on social media.

On the night of November 2, Russian troops focused their main efforts on strikes against Ukraine’s critical and energy infrastructure. This was reported by Yuriy Ignat, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian Air Force.

Russia claimed to have attacked thermal power plants in three regions of Ukraine and port infrastructure in the Odesa region.

As a reminder, Russia launched a massive attack on Ukraine using missiles and drones.

Earlier, it was reported that Russia had deployed Tu-160 strategic bombers.

Prior to this, Zelenskyy had warned that Russia was preparing a massive attack on Ukraine’s energy and logistics sectors.