A loud explosion was heard in Kyiv early in the morning on March 9, as reported by a Kyiv Independent journalist.

Earlier, the Kyiv Oblast military administration reported that the oblast's air defenses had been operating.

The Kyiv Oblast military administration said shortly after midnight on March 9 that Ukraine's air defenses were "operating" in Kyiv Oblast.

No other information about what the air defenses were targeting has been made available yet.

Explosions were reported in the cities of Kharkiv, Khmelnytsky, and Zhytomyr, as well as Kyiv, Poltava, Lviv, Vinnytsia, Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil oblasts amid a mass Russian attack late on March 8 and into the early hours of March 9.

Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov said at 3:45 a.m. local time that Russian forces attacked the region. He urged residents to remain in shelters.

Numerous explosions have been reported in the city of Kharkiv. According to Suspilne media, part of the city is left without electricity following the attack.