Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
At least four civilians have been confirmed killed so far.
A wave of explosions and air raid sirens swept across Ukraine over two days as Russian forces carried out an unprecedented aerial offensive.
Ukraine’s Air Force said in a statement on Telegram, nearly 1,000 drones and missiles were fired between the evening of March 23 and the evening of March 24. The barrage unfolded in two phases, combining overnight missile strikes with sustained daytime drone attacks.
According to Ukrainian authorities, 426 aerial weapons were launched overnight, followed by 556 drones during the day. Air defenses intercepted a large share, but several targets were still hit.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said at least four civilians were killed in the strikes, which affected 11 regions.
Article continues below.
Click to display external content from t.co,
- You can always enable and disable third-party content.
You agree to display external third-party content. Personal data may be sent to the provider of the content and other third-party services.
Biggest of the war
According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), the prolonged strike series was the largest Russian series of the war to date.
The think tank believe Moscow is combining large numbers of drones with missile strikes to overwhelm Ukrainian defenses.
Reports suggest Russia has also accumulated long-range drones for use in prolonged campaigns.
The analysts from the ISW, assesses, that the Russian strategy will “disproportionally affect civilian areas”.
They also suggest, that Russia is trying to take advantage of the global shortage in Patriot interceptors due to the US currently at war with Iran.
Sources: Ukrainian Air Force, Ukrainian government statements, Institute for the Study of War
