UN agencies are supporting efforts on Friday to get energy services up and running in Ukraine, and keep families warm amid freezing winter temperatures, following a large-scale overnight attack.
Russian forces launched hundreds of drones and several missiles in the capital Kyiv and other cities, including one that can carry nuclear warheads, according to media reports.
At least four people were killed in Kyiv, and roughly 25 others injured, while thousands of apartment buildings in the city were left without heat in the cold weather.
The victims included a medic who was saving others as part of an emergency services team, the UN World Health Organization ( WHO ) said in a tweet . Four healthcare workers were injured, and three ambulances were damaged.
Millions without heat
In a social media post, UNICEF said that three children were reportedly injured in the massive attack across Ukraine which "left millions without heating, water and power."
The agency "is further bolstering energy systems to also enable repairs and is working around the clock with local authorities to help keep critical services for children and families running."
In the city of Kryyvi Rih in central Ukraine, aid workers distributed hot meals to affected residents and first responders, in addition to providing construction materials to cover damaged apartments, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs ( OCHA ) tweeted .
A continuing 'trend'
The attack occurred in a week when massive airstrikes were carried out on Kharkiv in the northeast, Dnipro in the east, and the Kherson region in the southeast, said Elisabeth Arnsdorf Haslund, spokesperson for the UN refugee agency, UNHCR .
"It's really emphasising the continuation of this trend with intensified Russian attacks on Ukraine that we have witnessed on the ground for several months. And this is clearly continuing now into 2026," she told UN News.
