Russian aerial attacks forced the full or partial closure of three bridges over the Dnipro River in Kyiv, causing traffic jams and disrupting movement through the Ukrainian capital, according to the Associated Press, citing statements by Kyiv’s mayor and Ukrainian officials.
The closures affected half of Kyiv’s six road bridges and appeared to represent a new dimension in Russia’s campaign against the city’s residents. Previous Russian attacks had struck apartment blocks, supermarket warehouses, filling stations and data centres, among other targets.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia launched more than 100 drones at Ukraine overnight, hitting Kyiv and eight other regions. Almost half were jet-powered drones, which he described as particularly difficult to intercept. One drone struck a high-rise apartment building in Kyiv, killing one person, while at least four other people were reported wounded elsewhere.
Zelensky said Russian Shahed drones struck the Pivdennyi Bridge in Kyiv several times. The bridge was among those affected by the attacks, although the supplied reporting does not establish the full extent of the damage to each bridge.
The UN high commissioner for human rights, Volker Turk, said civilians were bearing the brunt of the war. “The war in Ukraine is a human rights catastrophe that is growing and intensifying by the week, causing unfathomable pain to civilians,” he said in Geneva on Friday. “Across Ukraine, people are living in constant dread.”
The attacks came as Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, said Kyiv had received separate proposals from the United States, India, Turkey and Egypt for a partial truce with Russia. The proposals envision halting attacks on energy infrastructure and on Black Sea shipping used to transport grain and other agricultural products to world markets.
Sybiha said the proposals marked the first time India had offered to play a role in the process. New Delhi is balancing its relationship with Russia against growing partnerships with the United States and other Western powers. A proposed US sanctions package could impose tariffs of up to 100% on India because it is a major importer of Russian oil, according to the Associated Press.
Kyiv said it was prepared to accept an energy and Black Sea ceasefire if it covered Russian attacks on Ukraine’s power grid, Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries and attacks on cargo vessels carrying grain and other farm products through the Black Sea.
“We are ready for an energy and Black Sea ceasefire, but only in that combination. Energy and a ceasefire in the Black Sea,” Sybiha told reporters.
He also repeated Ukraine’s offer of an unconditional ceasefire along the front line. Moscow has rejected that proposal, saying a comprehensive peace agreement must be reached instead of a temporary truce.
The aerial campaign has intensified in recent months while fighting along the roughly 770-mile front line through northern, eastern and southern Ukraine has become virtually deadlocked. Russia invaded Ukraine more than four years ago, and the reporting said there were no concrete signs that a peace settlement was possible.
The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, said Russian forces lost control of almost 116 square miles between March and September. The institute also estimated that the Russian military suffered more than 46,000 casualties in September, its highest monthly total of the year. It did not provide a corresponding figure for Ukrainian troops killed or wounded.
Ukraine has increasingly used long-range drones and missiles against Russia, targeting military manufacturing plants and oil refineries. Russia’s Defence Ministry said its air defences had downed 646 Ukrainian drones overnight over Russian regions, occupied Crimea, the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea.
Andrei Bocharov, governor of Russia’s south-western Volgograd region, said one person was wounded in an attack targeting what he called “industrial infrastructure”. Russia’s deputy prime minister, Alexander Novak, said Ukraine attacked four Russian oil refineries overnight, but that air defences prevented damage to key equipment. He said the government and companies had worked to improve refinery protection.
Russian President Vladimir Putin decreed in August that the state could temporarily take control of critical infrastructure facilities if private owners failed to protect them or rebuild them after Ukrainian strikes, according to the Associated Press.
Sybiha said Ukraine was seeking 300 Patriot missiles from partner countries. Ukrainian intelligence services estimate that Russia has 600 ballistic missiles in reserve and can produce up to 140 a month, he said. Patriot systems can defend effectively against ballistic missiles, but supplies are limited, in part because of the war in Iran, the reporting said.
Ukraine also urgently needs funding to contract future drone production and avoid supply gaps at the beginning of next year, Sybiha said. Kyiv faces a projected budget deficit of roughly £20 billion this year. The European Union has promised to help meet Ukraine’s financial needs and strengthen its defence.
The European Commission said on Friday that it had disbursed €2.9 billion, or £2.5 billion, to Ukraine in its latest financing package. Zelensky said the funds would support Ukraine’s financial stability and defence.
Zelensky again called on foreign countries to close loopholes in international sanctions on Russia and impose additional trade restrictions. He said Russian drones and missiles were “critically dependent” on foreign components, adding: “Every Russian drone can actually be stopped right at the production line.”
Russia is also facing economic and financial pressure from high military spending and debt. Despite the discussion of limited ceasefires, the bridge strikes, continuing drone attacks and ongoing battles along the front show that the conflict remains active, with civilians and essential infrastructure continuing to face the consequences.
