Russians hit 4 oblasts with missiles: 4 Ukrainians killed, 45 more injured while Republicans in the US Congress blocked military aid to Ukraine (updated)
The Russian Armed Forces fired 59 aerial weapons on Ukraine – missiles of various types and Shahed drones on January 8, 2024. Eighteen missiles and all eight Shaheds have been shot down.
According to Ukraine’s Air Force and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the target of the Russian attack was Ukrainian critical infrastructure, industrial, civilian, and military facilities.
Aftermath of the attack on Dnipropetrovsk OblastThe missiles that were not shot down managed to strike multiple oblasts of Ukraine. In particular, ballistic missiles were fired into the Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia and Khmelnytskyi oblasts.
A spokesman for the Ukrainian Air Force, Colonel Yurii Ihnat, explained during the national 24/7 newscast that Ukraine lacks modern Western air defence systems to destroy the total of incoming threats.
“A large number of ballistic missiles were fired by the enemy, including Kinzhals and missiles that lock on the target along a ballistic trajectory (Kh-22s), six (ballistic) Iskanders, and S-300/S-400 missiles. All of them fly on a ballistic trajectory. It should be understood that such targets can be shot down only by systems capable of doing it, particularly by Patriot systems,” Ihnat said.
Russians killed at least four people, 45 more were injured, and several more may be burried under rubble as a result of a Russian missile attack.
As of January 9, 2024, Three fatalities amongst the civilian population have been reported in the Khmelnytska Oblast.
One person was killed and 31 others were injured, including five children, as a result of a Russian missile attack in the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
In the city of Novomoskovsk, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, a minibus was overturned by a blast wave, and eight passengers were able to exit the vehicle on their own. A total of 20 people, including four children, sought medical attention.
Rescue workers and police in Zaporizhzhia are working at six scenes – missile strikes that hit residential areas near houses. Early reports indicate that three people have been injured.
A shopping centre and more than two dozen homes were damaged in Kryvyi Rih. A 58-year-old man sustained shrapnel injuries. Another 62-year-old woman died in a destroyed house.
The Mayor of Novomoskovsk Serhii Reznik reported that residential buildings had been damaged as a result of the missile attack on the city. He said that there were no casualties. He confirmed that at this time, there are about 20 victims, including children. The injured are currently being provided with medical and psychological assistance.
According to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, emergency and rescue operations are still underway in Donetsk, Kherson, and Khmelnytskyi oblasts after the Russian army’s attacks.
He also said he had held a meeting on further international agenda and announced an eventful month in foreign policy.
“Many steps will be taken, and I am confident that we will be able to strengthen our state. Our air defence system. Our work with partners on drones. As well as sanctions against Russia, including those already imposed. It is vital to eliminate any possible schemes to circumvent sanctions. We are also working on new sanctions: the architecture of pressure on Russia must be strengthened,” said the Ukrainian President in his video address on 8 January.
By way of background, 58 Ukrainians were killed, and more than 120 people were injured in the large-scale bombardment of Russians on the morning of December 29, 2023. On January 2, 2024, Russians killed at least five civilians and injured 129 throughout Ukraine.
National Security and Defense Council Secretary Oleksiy Danilov has also reacted by calling on the world to provide Kyiv with more weapons to stop Russian aggression.
After the second massive Russian attack in the last four days, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba listed five urgent steps he is expecting from allies:
- Expedite the delivery of additional air defence systems and ammunition to Ukraine;
- Provide Ukraine with combat drones of all types;
- Provide Ukraine with long-range missiles of 300 kilometer+ range;
- Approve the use of frozen Russian assets for assisting Ukraine;
- Isolate Russian diplomats in relevant capitals and international organizations.
In a phone conversation on January 2024, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak that Russia has launched at least 500 missiles and drones at Ukraine over the past five days. Zelenskyy expressed gratitude for the UK’s “substantial and comprehensive” efforts to strengthen Ukraine’s air defence.
2022 American ABS News had an opportunity to look into the letter from the Ukrainian government’s spokesman to the U.S. Congress, where the official had asked to support the further provision of Centurion C-RAM air defense systems to Ukraine.
The Centurion C-RAM is a “land-based” version of the Mark 15 Phalanx CIWS naval anti-aircraft artillery systems, which were designed to destroy anti-ship missiles. Unlike its “sea” predecessor, C-RAM can destroy not only cruise missiles, but also enemy’s drones and even unguided rockets.
The human rights community in Ukraine believes that the de-occupation of Crimea is necessary to stop the systematic and gross violations of human rights committed by the Russian Federation on the peninsula. They are urging other countries to support Ukraine with timely and sufficient supplies of weapons and military equipment.
Earlier at the international conference Global Crimea, Anton Korynevych, the ambassador-at-large of Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, called on countries from all continents to join the coalition in order to create a special tribunal for Russia.
