Power, water restored in Kyiv

GBNEWS24DESK//

Water and power supplies were fully restored in Kyiv yesterday a day after Russian missile strikes, as grain exports from Ukraine continued despite Moscow pulling out of a deal to let ships through.

Russian authorities meanwhile announced that tens of thousands more civilians would be “evacuated” from the Russian-occupied southern Ukrainian region of Kherson amid a counter-offensive from Kyiv.

Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovich said Monday’s bombardment was “one of the most massive shellings of our territory by the army of the Russian Federation”.

Following the strikes, aerial views showed Kyiv plunged in darkness overnight, with the only lights coming from cars driving through.

The shelling had left 80 percent of the capital’s consumers without water and 350,000 homes without electricity. Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko yesterday said water and electricity supplies had been “fully restored” in the capital.

In the south, Kyiv’s forces are preparing for fierce battles to recapture the city of Kherson and its surrounding region. Russian occupation authorities in Kherson said yesterday that tens of thousands more people would be “evacuated” from the region amid Kyiv’s counter-offensive.

This comes after 70,000 people already left their homes in Kherson, Moscow-installed local authorities said last week.

The Russian-installed leader of the Kherson region, Vladimir Saldo, said yesterday new resettlements were being carried out because of the risk of a “massive missile attack” by Ukrainian forces on a local dam.

But Ukraine said that Russian “occupiers are carrying out forced displacement of the civilian population”, reports AFP.

Also yesterday, three more grain-loaded cargo ships left Ukrainian ports despite Russia’s decision to suspend its participation in a deal to allow grain exports to cross the Black Sea.

Russia announced the move after accusing Kyiv of a “massive” drone attack on its fleet, which Ukraine labelled a “false pretext”.

At least 10 ships sailed from Ukraine’s ports on Monday along the maritime corridor. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was “risky” to continue with the exports without Russia’s consent.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke to his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron yesterday.