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Russia launched almost 1,000 drones against Ukraine within 24 hours between March 23 and 24, making it one of Moscow’s largest aerial attacks since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.
Following a massive barrage of missiles and drones overnight, Russia carried on its attack during Tuesday in a rare daytime wave of over 550 attack drones targeting central and western regions.
At least three people have been killed and over 30 have been injured across Ukraine during the daylight attack, following the overnight missiles and drone assault, killing at least four people and injuring 21, according to regional authorities.
Lviv in Western Ukraine got hit and 17 people were wounded when Russian drones hit civilian areas in the city not far from the border with Poland.
UNESCO listed monastery in Lviv old town hit
Lviv regional Governor Maksym Kozytskyi said an architectural landmark of national significance, the Bernardine Monastery complex, was damaged in the attack.
The Monastery is situated in Lviv’s historic centre, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
In his evening address Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the history of this church dates back to the early 17th century.
“Iranian ‘Shahed’ drones, modernised by Russia, are striking a church in Lviv – this is an absolute perversion, and only someone like Putin could find this appealing.”
Moscow strikes also hit critical infrastructure facilities in other districts.
Russia also targeted Ivano-Frankivsk, another regional capital in western Ukraine.
Two people were killed in the attack in the city centre, four others were injured, including a 6-year-old child, regional governor stated.
Authorities also reported damage to maternity hospitals and around 10 residential buildings.
Russia ‘changing tactics’ and ‘trying to find vulnerabilities’
Explosions were reported as well in Khmelnytskyi and Ternopil, in Western Ukraine, as well as in Vinnytsia and Zhytomyr, in the central part of the country.
A 12-year-old girl was injured in a Russian strike on central Zhytomyr and has been hospitalised.
Kyiv and the areas around the capital were also targeted during the daytime attack with Ukraine’s Air Force registering drones flying towards Kyiv from the North.
Ukraine’s Defence Ministry advisor Serhii Flash said that Russia is constantly changing its tactics for massive strikes, “trying to find vulnerabilities,” and break through Ukraine’s air defences.
Zelenskyy said the scale of Russian attack makes it ”abundantly clear that Russia has no intention of actually ending this war.”
“And when you consider that Russia is also helping the Iranian regime to strike across the entire region, the conclusion is quite obvious: without additional and strong pressure on Russia, without tangible Russian losses, those in Moscow will have no desire to step back from the war or to get used to peace again.”