Key developments on March 25:
- Russia launches another missile attack on Kyiv, at least 2 injured
- Russian attack on Odesa injures 4
- Navy: Russian warship Ivan Khurs may have been damaged in Ukraine's March 23 missile attack on Crimea
- Russian governor claims fire at power plant in Rostov Oblast disabled 2 units
- Defense Ministry: More than 2,000 Russian missiles downed over Ukraine since start of all-out war
Russia launches another missile attack on Kyiv, at least 2 injured
A series of explosions rocked Kyiv on March 25 as Russia launched yet another missile attack on Ukraine’s capital.
Kyiv Independent correspondents in the capital heard at least four loud explosions just seconds after air raid sirens sounded at around 10: 30 a.m. local time and saw smoke rising from the left bank of the city.
Serhii Popko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, said in a post on Telegram that debris from an intercepted missile had fallen in the city’s Pechersk district, damaging a non-residential building.
Debris fell on a building of the Kyiv State Academy of Decorative and Applied Arts, destroying the academy's gym and concert hall, according to a Kyiv Independent reporter on the ground, citing the institution's employees. The Culture Ministry confirmed the academy was struck, adding that an employee was wounded.
Debris from intercepted missiles damaged two houses in the Solomianskyi district and a house in the Darnytskyi district, where the attack also caused a fire in a non-residential building, according to the city authorities.
Debris was initially also reported in the Dniprovskyi district though this was later retracted.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko confirmed emergency services had been called to the Pecherskiy, Solomyanskyi, and Dniprovskyi districts of the capital.
As of 3:30 p.m. local time, the number of victims in Kyiv's Pecherskiy district rose to 10, according to the State Emergency Service. The Kyiv City Military Administration clarified that out of the 10 victims, two people were wounded and hospitalized, and the remaining eight people had suffered from shock.
Klitschko said that two pregnant women and a 16-year-old girl were among the victims.
The rescue operation concluded at about 6:50 p.m. local time.
President Volodymyr Zelensky and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged Western allies to provide Ukraine with more air defense systems following the recent Russia's missile strike against Kyiv.
Chris York
Russian attack on Odesa injures 4
A Russian ballistic missile attack on Odesa injured four people, the Southern Defense Forces reported on Telegram on March 25.
The air raid siren sounded in Odesa at around 5:20 p.m. local time. Explosions were heard minutes later.
Two buildings were destroyed, and windows in the surrounding buildings were shattered, according to the Southern Defense Forces.
Odesa Oblast Governor Oleh Kiper said that three women had been wounded, but their injuries were "not serious."
Kiper also reported that due to previous attacks on the city's power network, 300,000 people in Odesa are currently cut off from electricity.
Navy: Russian warship Ivan Khurs may have been damaged in Ukraine's March 23 missile attack on Crimea
In addition to the landing ships Yamal and Azov, Ukraine's March 23 missile attack on Russian-occupied Crimea could have damaged the Russian military's Ivan Khurs ship, Navy spokesperson Dmytro Pletenchuk said on March 25.
Ukraine struck two Russian Ropucha-class landing ships, the Yamal and the Azov, in the Crimean city of Sevastopol in the late hours of March 23, Ukraine's Armed Forces confirmed on March 24. The Yamal was "critically damaged," according to Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR).
Ukraine's Navy is verifying information about the possible damage to another Russian warship, the reconnaissance vessel Ivan Khurs, Pletenchuk told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL).
"There is a suspicion that, most likely, it (the Ivan Khurs ship) was also damaged. As soon as we collect this information from various sources, we will be able to verify it, and then we will be able to operate on it as a fact," Pletenchuk said.
The ship does not serve as an active combat unit but rather performs auxiliary functions to the Russian Black Sea Fleet, he added.
Ukraine previously attacked the Ivan Khurs warship with drones in May of last year, but the Russian Defense Ministry claimed to have repelled that attack.
In recent months, Ukraine has intensified its attacks on occupied Crimea, targeting Russian military assets in and around the Black Sea. Russia has occupied the peninsula since 2014.
As Ukraine's campaign against Russia's navy continues, Russia is redeploying its Black Sea Fleet from occupied Crimea to the relative safety of Novorossiysk, HUR reported on March 21
The Strategic Communications Center of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (StratCom) recently reported that as of early February 2024, 33% of the fleet's warships had been disabled, including 24 ships and one submarine.
Russia has taken a number of steps to address the continuing threat, including replacing the commander of the Russian Navy earlier this month.
Chris York
Russian governor claims fire at power plant in Rostov Oblast disabled 2 units
A transformer substation at the Novocherkassk State District Power Plant in Russia's Rostov Oblast caught fire overnight on March 25, claimed Vasily Golubev, the regional governor.
His statement came after Russian Telegram channels wrote about multiple explosions in the region amid an alleged drone attack, citing local residents. The Russian Defense Ministry claimed to have shot down 11 Ukrainian drones over Rostov Oblast overnight.
The Novocherkassk State District Power Plant is the largest thermal power plant in Rostov Oblast. Two high-voltage 330 kV lines, Tikhoretskaya and Rostovskaya, were automatically disconnected as a result of the fire, Golubev claimed.
"The power supply to consumers has been restored. Two power units of the State District Power Plant were temporarily taken out of operation," he wrote on Telegram.
The fire was quickly extinguished, and its cause is being determined, according to the governor. No casualties were reported.
The Kyiv Independent couldn’t verify the claims. There were no comments from Ukrainian officials on the incident.
In the past weeks, Ukrainian forces have launched a series of drone strikes aimed at damaging Russia's oil industry.
A total of 12 Russian oil refineries were successfully hit in multiple regions deep inside Russian territory as of March 17, Ukrainska Pravda reported, citing an unnamed source in the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).
Drone attacks on Russia's oil refineries have likely disrupted at least 10% of the country's refinery capacity, according to the U.K. Defense Ministry.
Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanishyna said on March 22 that Russia's oil refineries are "absolutely legitimate targets" for the Ukrainian military. Her statement followed media reports that the U.S. had asked Ukraine to stop attacking the Russian oil industry.
Advisor to Ukraine's Presidential Office head Mykhailo Podolyak denied the reports, saying Kyiv did not receive any such calls from Washington.
Kateryna Denisova
Defense Ministry: More than 2,000 Russian missiles downed over Ukraine since start of all-out war
Ukraine's Armed Forces have shot down more than 2,000 cruise and ballistic Russian missiles since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the Defense Ministry reported on March 25.
Another two ballistic missiles, launched from occupied Crimea, were shot down over Kyiv on March 25 following multiple explosions, according to the Air Force. Debris fell in the Solomianskyi and Pechersk districts, damaging a three-story building in the latter.
At least two people have been reportedly injured, and eight others suffered from shock.
Moscow has launched over 8,000 missiles and more than 4,600 drones against Ukraine as of Feb. 22 since its all-out war, said Yurii Ihnat, former spokesperson for Ukraine's Air Force.
"That's a result of the titanic work of Ukrainian air defenders. Thousands of lives were saved by modern air defense systems provided by our partners," the ministry wrote on X, reporting on the destroyed targets.
Over the past week, Moscow launched several large-scale attacks on Ukraine's cities, including energy infrastructure. Around 190 missiles, 140 Shahed-type drones, and 700 aerial bombs were used, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on March 24. Local authorities reported multiple injured and killed civilians.
Ukrainian officials urged Western allies to provide Kyiv with more weapons, including air defense systems and missiles, to protect Ukrainian cities from regular strikes.
Chris York
