World

Russian Attacks Hit Kharkiv Hospital and Multiple Ukrainian Energy Sites, 73 Injured

By Al Jazeera Staff

Russian ballistic missiles and aerial bombs struck a city clinical hospital in Kharkiv overnight, injuring at least 73 people. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted on X that the Russians directly struck the hospital, damaging the cardiology department where patients were being treated. Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov confirmed on Telegram that the hospital suffered heavy damage, with more than 1,000 windows shattered.

In addition to the hospital strike, Russian forces attacked energy infrastructure in several Ukrainian regions. Zelenskyy described the attacks as a “complex, massive attack” targeting power generation facilities and substations in Odesa, Cherkasy, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Chernivtsi, Chernihiv, and Rivne. The Russian Ministry of Defence said it had targeted electricity facilities in Vinnytsia, Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv, which supply power to the Ukrainian army and military factories. Governor Vitalii Bunechko reported that more than 180,000 people were without power in the Zhytomyr region on Tuesday morning, and Odesa has implemented scheduled power outages in response to the attacks.

Zelenskyy added that Russia launched 289 attack drones, 17 ballistic missiles and 59 cruise missiles overnight. The attacks come a day after a Russian strike on an aid distribution centre killed at least 31 people.

Separately, two employees at a Russian oil refinery in Yaroslavl were injured when a Ukrainian drone attack caused a fire at the site, according to Governor Mikhail Yevrayev.

The latest exchange of attacks follows a U.S. effort to advance peace talks. U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff said on X that a meeting between U.S., Russian and Ukrainian officials will take place in Abu Dhabi next week, focusing on post‑war security arrangements, de‑escalation, humanitarian efforts and steps toward peace. He added that U.S. negotiators will meet with representatives from France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the European Union and NATO in Brussels this week to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine, Europe’s post‑war security architecture and economic opportunities to support Ukraine’s reconstruction.

Reporting from Kyiv, Al Jazeera’s Audrey MacAlpine noted that the upcoming U.S. midterm elections are of particular importance to Ukrainians, as they could influence future U.S. military aid to Ukraine. She said that since the Trump administration, there have been no significant military aid packages for Ukraine, whereas Biden’s early war years saw about $60 billion in aid. Europe has largely filled the gap, but Ukraine continues to seek a resumption of U.S. aid, a priority for President Zelenskyy for over six months.