Russia launches massive drone and missile barrage on Ukraine after general’s killing

Russia launched a wide-scale overnight assault across multiple regions of Ukraine, firing more than 600 drones and 30 missiles in one of its most extensive attacks in recent months, Ukrainian authorities said. The barrage killed at least three civilians, including a four-year-old child in the central Zhytomyr region, according to local officials.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the attack had been anticipated, warning a day earlier that Moscow often escalates violence around the Christmas period. “It is in Russia’s nature to carry out some kind of massive offensive on our Christmas, especially on December 23, 24, and 25,” Zelensky said.

Reacting to the strikes, Zelensky accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of refusing to end the war. “Putin still cannot accept the fact that he must stop killing,” he said, adding that the continued attacks show “the world is not putting enough pressure on Russia.”

The overnight assault followed the killing of a senior Russian military official, Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov, head of the Russian army’s operational training department. Sarvarov was killed when an explosive device attached to his car detonated as he was on his way to work in Moscow.

Russian authorities swiftly blamed Ukrainian security services for the assassination, framing it as a terrorist act. Ukraine has not commented on the accusation and has not claimed responsibility for the killing.

The escalation underscores heightened tensions as the war drags on into another winter, with Ukraine warning of further Russian strikes and renewing calls for increased international pressure on Moscow to halt its military campaign.