Bogdan opens the door. Once again he has a visitor. Word has gotten around among his acquaintances in Kyiv that he almost always has electricity, warm heating and running cold and warm water. This time it is Ira, a distant acquaintance, and her mother who seek his help. Ira holds a large sports bag in her hand. “We didn’t just come to drink tea,” says Ira, “we finally want to take a real shower here.” The two women, who live two subway stops away, have not had running water for days. And: “Today I had electricity for two hours, yesterday none at all,” says Ira.
With its attacks this winter, the Russian leadership is increasingly targeting Ukraine’s energy system, which is already struggling after almost four years of war. The result is repeated long outages of electricity, water and heat supplies – most recently with temperatures sometimes reaching double-digit temperatures below zero.
In the early hours of February 8, Russia further intensified its attacks on Ukraine. The Ukrainian Air Force recorded strikes in 13 locations after the night of February 8th. There were also explosions in Lviv, western Ukraine. Last week, two large-scale missile and drone attacks hit power plants, substations and high-voltage lines. Western regions and the energy supply from nuclear power plants are particularly affected. Several nuclear power plants had to reduce their output and one unit switched off automatically.
There are also victims of drone attacks in Belgorod, Russia. According to Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, two people were injured over the weekend. Because of the difficult situation of the energy system, points where you can keep warm have also been set up there.
Russian bomb hits residential area
The eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk was hit particularly hard. A Russian bomb hit a residential area there. Several apartments on the third floor of a nine-story residential building caught fire. According to the regional prosecutor’s office, a 77-year-old pensioner was killed. Three men between the ages of 40 and 48 were injured in the attack in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk, the regional prosecutor’s office said.
A drone attack on the Ukrainian energy company Naftogaz’s facilities in the Poltava region caused significant damage to equipment and infrastructure. CEO Serhiy Korezkyj said that at least no one was injured. The attack is now the 19th Russian attack on Naftogaz facilities since the beginning of 2026.
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russia has used more than 2,000 drones, 1,200 guided bombs and over 100 missiles against Ukraine in the past week. “Almost every day they attack energy facilities, logistical infrastructure and residential buildings,” Zelensky wrote on social media. This happens even during diplomatic peace efforts.
It is primarily the poor people who suffer as a result of the Russian air raids
Ivan Kukurdziak
“It is mainly the poor people who suffer as a result of the Russian air strikes,” says Ivan Kukurudziak. He works for the Catholic community of Sant’Egidio in Kyiv and looks after people without a permanent address on their behalf. Many of them live in the city’s underpasses. Kukurudziak goes there every evening and brings the homeless warm clothes, blankets and food.
In Kyiv, people can warm up in tents
But even in apartments it gets icy cold at these temperatures without heating. “Currently, many hundreds of people have to live in apartments where there is hardly any electricity and no heating. And with every Russian air raid, there are several hundred more apartments without electricity,” says Kukurudziak. The city has set up tents where people can warm up and charge their phones. But they are far from sufficient. “And if you smell unpleasant or are drunk, you won’t even come in.”
At Bogdan’s house, Ira talks about her father. He hasn’t dared to leave his apartment for three years, out of fear of the TZK military authority, which is looking for men on the streets so that they can send them to the front. “He’s drinking again, I noticed it clearly in my last phone call with him.” She could understand that, he was completely lonely. Her mother, who lives separately from her father, calls her almost every night for fear of Russian attacks. “But I don’t want to be called in the middle of the night.” To distract herself, she listens to a lot of music.
Russian attacks continue despite diplomatic efforts to end the war. A round of negotiations ended on Thursday in Abu Dhabi on the Persian Gulf. The negotiations, which began in January and brought both warring parties together for the first time after months of radio silence, were described as productive by everyone involved. The tangible result so far has been a prisoner exchange. The most difficult issue continues to be Russia’s demand for Ukraine to cede further territories.
A day after the round of talks, a high-ranking military officer was shot in Moscow on Friday. Russia spoke of a Ukrainian assassination attempt on Vladimir Alexeyev, the deputy head of Russian army intelligence. On Sunday, Russian authorities reported two arrests in connection with this. According to the Russian domestic intelligence service FSB, the suspected perpetrator was arrested in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates and transferred to Russia. An accomplice was arrested in Moscow and another accomplice fled to Ukraine. Alexeyev, who was taken to hospital after the attack, is now said to be conscious again. There has been no statement from the Ukrainian side so far.
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the US government wants to end the war in Ukraine by the summer and is inviting people to a new round of talks with Russia in the next few days – this time in the United States. Zelensky said on Saturday that Washington had “suggested for the first time” that Ukrainian and Russian negotiators meet in the USA.