Russia accused Ukraine on Monday of killing at least 24 people, including a child, in a drone strike at a hotel and cafe where civilians were celebrating New Year's Eve in a Russian-controlled part of southern Ukraine's Kherson region, Reuters reported.
The Ukrainian military, which has accused Russia of killing many civilians in its attacks on Ukrainian cities, did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
Vladimir Saldo, the Russian-appointed governor of Kherson Oblast, first claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement. The Russian Foreign Ministry and senior Russian politicians later accused Ukraine of carrying out a "terrorist attack."
Reuters could not immediately confirm the photos of what Saldo's press service said was the result of the attack, nor the allegations themselves.
The footage showed at least one dead body under a white sheet. The building showed signs of a fierce fire, and there were stains on the ground that looked like blood, Reuters reports.
Saldo said in a statement that three Ukrainian drones had hit a New Year's Eve party in Horley, a coastal village, in what he described as a "deliberate attack" on civilians. He said many people were burned alive.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said initial information indicated that 24 people had been killed, including one child, and that 50 people had been injured, including six minors who were being treated in hospital.
"There is no doubt that the attack was planned in advance, with drones deliberately targeting areas where civilians had gathered to celebrate New Year's Eve," the ministry said in a statement, calling the attack a "war crime."
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a Telegram post that Ukraine's Western allies were ultimately responsible for the attack. Senior politicians, including the speakers of both houses of the Russian parliament, condemned Kiev.
The speaker of the Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian parliament, Valentina Matviyenko, condemned the attack on her Telegram channel.
Kherson is one of four regions in Ukraine that Russia declared its own in 2022, a move that Kiev and most Western countries condemned as an illegal seizure of territory.
Ukraine's Energy Ministry: Russian drone attack damages power infrastructure in several areas
A Russian drone attack overnight damaged power infrastructure in several Ukrainian regions, Ukraine's Energy Ministry said today, Reuters reports.
The ministry said that as a result of the attack, a "significant number" of households in the Volyn and Odessa regions - in the northwest and southwest of Ukraine, respectively - were left without electricity, as well as some consumers in the Chernihiv region, north of the capital Kiev.
The governor of the Volyn region said more than 103.000 households in the region were left without electricity as a result of the attack. The region is several hundred kilometers from the front line and borders NATO member Poland.
Ukrainian military: Russian oil refinery in Tatarstan hit
The Ukrainian military said on Monday it had struck the Russian Ilysky oil refinery in Russia's Krasnodar region overnight, adding that the results of the attack were still being confirmed, Reuters reported.
In a statement posted on Telegram, the military also said it had hit the Almetyevskaya oil preparation plant in the Russian republic of Tatarstan.
The Almetyevskaya facility is more than 600 miles (965 kilometers) from the nearest part of Ukrainian territory, and even further from the nearest territory currently under Kiev's control.
Russian media: Ukrainian drones hit energy storage facility in Almetyevsk
Ukrainian drones today hit an energy storage facility in the Russian city of Almetyevsk, causing a fire that has since been extinguished, Russian media reported, citing the press service of the local governor, Reuters reports.
Kiev has stepped up attacks on Russian energy infrastructure in recent months, aiming to cut off Moscow's sources of funding for its military campaign in Ukraine.
Almetyevsk is located about 1.700 kilometers from Ukrainian-controlled territory, in the oil-rich Volga River region of Tatarstan.
Sobyanin: Five Ukrainian drones heading towards Moscow shot down
Russian air defense units shot down five Ukrainian drones that were heading towards Moscow just before midnight on New Year's Eve, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said, Reuters reports.
This morning, in a series of posts on Telegram, Sobyanin stated that specialized teams at the locations where the drones fell are examining their remains.
Sobyanin did not mention victims or material damage.
Restrictions were temporarily imposed at Moscow's Domodedovo airport. Other airports in southern and central Russia were also under temporary restrictions.
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