The EU ambassador to Ukraine, Katarina Mathernova, has described Russia’s attack as “terror” in a post on X, adding that it has left families in the capital “without electricity, heat or water”.Ruslan Stefanchuk, the chair of Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, noted that despite the efforts of Ukraine’s air defences, Chernihiv was left without electricity, a maternity hospital was hit in Kharkiv, and houses were damaged across Kyiv.“This is yet another proof: Russia does not seek peace,” Stefanchuk said. “Its tactics remain unchanged – pressure on civilians through cold, darkness and intimidation.“Ukraine urgently needs additional air defence systems,” he added.Ukraine’s prime minister, Yulia Svyrydenko, said the strikes on the country’s energy infrastructure are part of a Russian plan to “freeze Ukrainians”.“Each wave of Russian strikes against our energy system reinforces a simple reality,” she said, echoing Stefanchuk, “delays in strengthening Ukraine’s air defences cost lives.”Kira Rudik, a Ukrainian politician, said in a post on X: “After last night’s attacks, I woke up without electricity, water, or heating. And some people did not wake up at all.”
Liubov Klymenko, 66, heats fireproof bricks, stones and an old family iron on the stove in her kitchen, which she uses to warm her apartment after critical civil infrastructure was hit by recent Russian missile and drone attacks, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine, January 23, 2026 [Alina Smutko/Reuters]
Russian strikes injure 6 people in Kherson region
A deluge of Russian air strikes, drones and shelling has battered Ukraine’s southern Kherson region, officials say. The strikes hit “critical and social infrastructure”, including three high-rise buildings and five private homes, injuring six people, said Oleksandr Prokudin, the head of the military administration. Separately, the National Police of Ukraine reported that two of its police officers were wounded in the region’s Dniprovskyi district when a Russian drone dropped explosives. One officer received shrapnel wounds to the arm and leg. It was not clear whether Prokudin’s casualty figures included police officers.
Russia claims to have captured village in Kharkiv region
Russia’s Ministry of Defence claims that its forces have taken full control of Starytsya, a village in northeastern Ukraine’s Kharkiv region. In a Telegram update, the ministry said troops also defeated Ukrainian forces in the nearby villages of Vovchanski Khutory and Okhrimovka. Al Jazeera cannot independently verify the claims. Russian forces also launched strikes against Ukrainian drone and energy facilities, the ministry added.
Photos: Kyiv hit by overnight Russian missile, drone attacks
Here are several photos taken in Kyiv, partially showing the aftermath of last night’s attacks by Russia. More than 300 missiles and drones were fired by Russia at cities across Ukraine.
