By Sadaf Sundas Riaz — SCN NEWS
KYIV, — Russian missile and drone attacks struck energy infrastructure across four Ukrainian regions overnight, leaving hundreds of thousands of households without electricity on Sunday as a six-day humanitarian ceasefire in the southern Kherson region approached its scheduled expiry. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Moscow of intensifying its attacks on Ukraine's electricity network while exploiting shortages of advanced air-defence interceptors, raising concerns about the country's ability to protect essential infrastructure ahead of winter. The latest strikes came as Ukraine and Russia continued exchanging long-range attacks despite a temporary reduction in fighting around the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky, where an internationally mediated agreement had allowed humanitarian assistance and civilian evacuations.
Zelenskyy said Russian forces had targeted electricity facilities in four regions during the night, disrupting supplies to hundreds of thousands of homes and forcing emergency crews to begin restoration work. The president warned that the intensity of the attacks remained extremely high and that Russian forces were seeking to take advantage of Ukraine's limited supply of interceptors capable of destroying ballistic missiles. His assessment highlighted the pressure on Ukrainian air defences as Russia continued using large numbers of drones and missiles to strike infrastructure far from the front line. Ukrainian authorities did not immediately provide a complete assessment of the damage or a timetable for restoring electricity to every affected community.
In western Ukraine, Ternopil regional governor Taras Pastukh reported that an attack on infrastructure had interrupted electricity supplies to several communities. Emergency teams were deployed to assess the damage and restore power, while regional authorities monitored the condition of essential services. The disruption formed part of a broader pattern of attacks on energy facilities that have repeatedly forced Ukrainian authorities to carry out repairs under the threat of further strikes. The latest outages added to concerns about the resilience of the country's electricity system as colder weather approaches.
Ukraine's air force said Russia had launched 433 long-range drones since Saturday evening, with Ukrainian defences shooting down 371. The military reported that additional drones remained airborne during its Sunday morning update, while Kyiv experienced repeated air-raid alerts after midnight. The figures illustrated the scale of the overnight operation and the challenge facing Ukrainian air-defence units required to protect cities, industrial installations and power infrastructure across a large geographical area. The reported interception figures were issued by Ukraine's military and could not be independently verified in full.
The attacks occurred during the final day of a six-day local ceasefire covering Oleshky and surrounding areas of the Kherson region. The agreement, reached through mediation involving U.S. first lady Melania Trump and Pope Leo XIV, was designed to create a temporary humanitarian corridor for civilians living in the Russian-controlled town. It allowed aid deliveries and evacuations in an area where residents have faced shortages of food, medicine and other basic necessities. Although the arrangement reduced fighting locally, it did not establish a nationwide ceasefire or prevent either side from conducting military operations elsewhere.
Ukraine's military said 167 civilians had been evacuated from threatened areas of the Kherson region on Sunday as the temporary agreement neared its scheduled end. The General Staff reported that the evacuees included 22 children and 21 people with limited mobility who required additional assistance. The operation followed the evacuation of residents from Oleshky earlier in the humanitarian pause, demonstrating the practical importance of the temporary agreement for communities exposed to prolonged fighting. The ceasefire was scheduled to expire at midnight Moscow time, equivalent to 2100 GMT on Sunday, with no confirmed extension announced in the reporting available at that point.
The local truce provided an unusual period of relative calm for residents of Kherson, the regional capital on the opposite bank of the Dnipro River from Russian-held Oleshky. Ukrainian forces recaptured Kherson in November 2022, but Russian positions across the river have continued to threaten the city with artillery fire and drones. Residents have endured repeated attacks on residential areas, transport routes and public facilities, forcing many families to leave while others remain despite the danger. During the temporary pause, some residents returned to public spaces and reopened businesses that had been affected by the persistent threat of bombardment.
The humanitarian agreement was particularly significant because Oleshky has remained under Russian control and access for international relief operations has been severely restricted. Thousands of civilians in the surrounding area have faced difficult living conditions, with shortages of essential supplies and limited opportunities to travel safely. The temporary cessation of hostilities created a rare opportunity to deliver assistance and move vulnerable residents away from immediate danger. However, the agreement's limited duration meant that humanitarian agencies and local authorities faced uncertainty over whether further deliveries or evacuations would be possible after Sunday.
The approaching expiry of the ceasefire also raised questions about whether the temporary arrangement could provide a model for broader humanitarian agreements between Moscow and Kyiv. Ukrainian officials had welcomed the reduction in violence around Oleshky as evidence that limited arrangements could be implemented even while negotiations over the wider war remained unresolved. The agreement demonstrated that both sides could observe a geographically restricted pause under specific conditions, but the continuation of attacks elsewhere underscored its limitations. No comprehensive agreement to halt military operations along the wider front line had been reached.
Elsewhere, Ukraine continued its own long-range attacks against targets inside Russia, with Zelenskyy saying Ukrainian forces had struck the Kamensky industrial plant in the southern Rostov region. The Ukrainian president described the facility as being involved in the production of missiles used by Russian forces, presenting the operation as part of Kyiv's effort to weaken Moscow's military-industrial capabilities. Russian authorities did not immediately comment on the reported attack, and the extent of any damage could not be independently established. The strike reflected Ukraine's continued emphasis on targeting facilities it considers important to Russia's military operations.
Russian authorities separately reported substantial damage to an industrial installation in the Nizhny Novgorod region following a large overnight Ukrainian drone attack. Regional governor Gleb Nikitin said the operation had caused significant damage but did not identify the affected facility. The region contains major industrial and energy installations, including the NORSI oil refinery, although officials had not confirmed that the refinery itself was the site of the reported damage. Ukrainian authorities did not immediately claim responsibility for the Nizhny Novgorod attack.
The Nizhny Novgorod regional government said measures were being taken to maintain fuel supplies at petrol stations and urged motorists to avoid unnecessary purchases. The warning suggested concern about possible disruption to the region's fuel distribution network, although authorities had not established publicly whether the damaged industrial facility was connected to oil refining. Russia's Defence Ministry said its forces had intercepted 235 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory overnight, reflecting the scale of the attacks reported by Moscow. As with Ukrainian military figures, the Russian interception claims could not be independently verified.
The renewed attacks on Russian industrial facilities came amid disagreement over efforts to limit strikes against energy infrastructure. Moscow accused Ukraine on Friday of resuming attacks on Russian oil refineries despite a request from U.S. President Donald Trump to stop operations that could affect international fuel prices. Kyiv has maintained that it supports a comprehensive halt to attacks on energy facilities, including Ukraine's own electricity network, but says Russia has been unwilling to accept such an arrangement. The competing positions have complicated efforts to establish a limited agreement protecting energy infrastructure on both sides.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries were contributing to imbalances in global fuel markets and affecting prices. Speaking on Russian state television on Sunday, Novak did not directly address the reported Nizhny Novgorod attack but linked damage to the country's refining industry with wider concerns about fuel availability. Moscow has repeatedly argued that strikes on energy installations have consequences beyond the battlefield, while Ukraine maintains that Russian infrastructure supporting military operations constitutes a legitimate target. The dispute has become increasingly important as international energy markets respond to geopolitical tensions and supply disruptions.
For Ukraine, the immediate concern remains the vulnerability of electricity generation, transmission and distribution facilities to repeated Russian attacks. Damage to power infrastructure can affect not only household electricity supplies but also water pumping, heating, communications and other essential services. Repair crews frequently face the difficulty of restoring damaged equipment while further air raids threaten the same areas. The cumulative impact of repeated strikes has placed considerable pressure on Ukraine's energy system and increased the importance of emergency equipment and international assistance.
The latest attacks also underscored the continuing shortage of sophisticated air-defence systems and interceptors capable of protecting Ukrainian infrastructure against ballistic missiles. Zelenskyy has repeatedly appealed to international partners for additional air-defence equipment, arguing that the ability to protect civilians and energy facilities depends on maintaining sufficient supplies. Large drone attacks create additional pressure by requiring defensive units to monitor and engage numerous targets over several hours. The combination of drones and missiles has therefore become a central feature of Russia's campaign against Ukrainian infrastructure.
Diplomatic efforts to end the wider conflict remain separate from the temporary humanitarian arrangement in Kherson. Russian and Ukrainian officials are expected to participate in further discussions in Abu Dhabi during November as part of U.S.-mediated efforts to explore a possible settlement. However, the continuation of long-range strikes and fighting elsewhere along the front line illustrates the distance between limited humanitarian cooperation and a broader agreement to end hostilities. Neither side has announced a comprehensive ceasefire, and major disagreements over territory and security guarantees remain unresolved.
As Sunday drew to a close, the humanitarian pause around Oleshky was approaching its scheduled expiry while Ukrainian emergency crews worked to restore electricity following the latest Russian attacks. The evacuation of civilians demonstrated that limited cooperation could provide immediate relief, but the continued exchange of strikes showed that the underlying conflict remained unchanged. With hundreds of thousands of households affected by power outages and no confirmed extension of the local ceasefire, Ukrainian authorities faced simultaneous challenges involving civilian protection, energy security and the risk of renewed fighting around Kherson.