Russia Strikes Ukraine Steel Plants, Cargo Vessels; Two Killed At Kryvyi Rih Plant

Russian forces struck steel and industrial facilities in several Ukrainian cities and hit two cargo vessels at the Black Sea port of Chornomorsk, while Ukrainian drones targeted industrial sites in Russia’s Samara region.

The ministry said its forces had struck Ukrainian steelmaker Zaporizhstal in the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia. It also claimed to have hit an Interpipe Steel complex in the central city of Dnipro and several plants in Kryvyi Rih, in southern Ukraine and the hometown of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

At least two people were killed in strikes on the ArcelorMittal plant in Kryvyi Rih, the company said, adding that production facilities were also damaged.

Russia’s Defence Ministry also said two cargo vessels were hit overnight at the Black Sea port of Chornomorsk, Interfax reported.

Ukraine targets industrial sites in Russia

The Russian strikes came after Ukraine launched drones at industrial facilities in Russia’s Samara region, Interfax reported, citing regional Governor Vyacheslav Fedorishchev.

Ukraine’s General Staff said on Saturday that one of the drones hit the Togliattikauchuk plant. The facility specialises in producing synthetic rubbers and fuel additives that are used in fuel for Russian missiles.

Russia’s Defence Ministry said its forces had downed 230 Ukrainian drones overnight across more than a dozen Russian regions, as well as over Crimea and the Azov and Black seas.

Ilya Sukhikh, mayor of the city of Togliatti in the Samara region, said several residential buildings were damaged and one person was injured.

In a separate attack, four commercial properties were set ablaze in the city of Taganrog in Russia’s Rostov region, local Mayor Svetlana Kambulova said, according to Russian news agency TASS.

Since its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has systematically attacked Ukraine’s power grid, defence plants and logistics hubs to disrupt local arms production, choke civilian electricity and heating, and undermine supply networks.

Ukraine has launched its own long-range campaign against Russian industrial infrastructure, including dozens of oil refineries. The attacks have disrupted Russia’s war revenue and caused domestic fuel shortages.

Russian strikes kill civilians across Ukraine

The latest industrial strikes came amid Russian attacks that have killed and injured civilians in several parts of Ukraine.

On Friday, at least two people were killed in Russian strikes on two petrol stations in Kyiv. Russia also struck fuel stations in the capital on Thursday, suggesting a new campaign focused on civilian areas in Kyiv, Al Jazeera reported.

Three people were killed in Russian attacks in the southeastern Ukrainian regions of Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhia and in Kharkiv in the northeast, according to the governors of those regions.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said 12 people, including a 12-year-old boy, were injured in the capital.

One person was also killed in the Kyiv region surrounding the capital, the regional governor said.

In an overnight Russian attack on the southwestern city of Odesa, at least 35 people were injured, regional Governor Oleg Kiper said.

Ukraine strikes Russian regions

Ukraine also carried out drone attacks inside Russia, killing one person in the Kursk region, according to local officials.

In Russia’s Belgorod region, a frequent target of Ukrainian forces, one person died in a Ukrainian drone attack, local officials said.

The head of Russian-controlled parts of the eastern Donetsk region said two local gas company employees were killed in a drone attack.

Two people were injured in a Ukrainian missile attack that hit two residential buildings and damaged an industrial facility in Volgograd, south of Saratov on the Volga River, local authorities said. They did not identify the industrial facility.

The attacks came as Zelenskyy was quoted by German broadcaster Deutsche Welle as saying he would be willing to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin during the G20 summit in Florida in December, if both leaders were invited, Al Jazeera reported.