Russia's Pounding On Ukraine

 Nadene Goldfoot                                      

                                 Damage to the theatre after the airstrike  Mariupol City Council officials stated that the theatre was the largest single air raid shelter in the city, sheltering 500 to 1,200 civilians, and at the time of the attack, women and children were sheltering in it,

Notable Mass-Casualty and High-Impact Attacks in Ukraine

The conflict has seen numerous devastating single-strike incidents resulting in heavy civilian casualties, including the 

March 2022 Mariupol Theatre airstrike, On 16 March 2022, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Russian Armed Forces bombed the Mariupol theatre in Mariupol, Ukraine. It was used as an air raid shelter during the siege of Mariupol, sheltering a large number of civilians. The estimations of the number of deaths that occurred due to the bombing have varied, from at least 12 and "likely many more" (Amnesty International) to as many as 600 (Associated Press).  On 24 February 2022, the Russian Armed Forces, working together with pro-Russian militias, besieged the port city of Mariupol, leading to heavy casualties. Supplies such as food, gas, and electricity were cut off during the siege. By 17 March, the mayor of Mariupol, Serhiy Orlov, estimated that 80–90 percent of the city had been destroyed due to shelling.                

                                               The aftermath of the attack

the April 2022 Kramatorsk railway station missile attack,  On 8 April 2022, a Russian missile strike hit the railway station of the Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The strike killed 63 civilians (including 9 children) and wounded 150 (including 34 children).  According to the Ukrainian government, between 1000 and 4000 civilians, mainly women and children, were present at the station awaiting evacuation from the region, which was being subjected to heavy Russian shelling.  At 10:24 and 10:25, media affiliated with the People's Republic of Donetsk published videos showing a pair of missiles being launched from Shakhtarsk, a city under separatist control. At approximately 10:30, two missiles hit near the railway station building in Kramatorsk, and the first reports were published in Ukrainian media at around 10:45.

Firefighters putting out a fire at a residential building in Dnipro on January 14 after it was destroyed by a Kh-22 missile.

 the January 2023 Dnipro apartment building strike,   On 14 January 2023 at about 3:30 p.m., a Russian Kh-22 missile struck a nine-story residential building in Dnipro, Ukraine, on Naberezhna Peremohy St [uk], 118, Sobornyi District in the right-bank part of the city, destroying one entrance and 236 apartments. On 19 January the official casualty rate was stated as 46 people killed (including 6 children) and 80 injured (12 in critical condition) and 11 people reported missing. 14 children were reported injured, and 39 inhabitants were rescued. The destruction left about 400 people homeless. The strike was part of months-long campaign of Russian strikes on Ukrainian civilians and civilian infrastructure that also had hit Dnipro.   This strike was the deadliest Russian attack on a residential building in Ukraine in the previous six months. three days of mourning was declared in Dnipro.                                           

Part of the attacks on civilians in the Russian invasion of Ukraine;  Hroza after the missile strike

the October 2023 Hroza cafe strike,  Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the attack "a completely deliberate act of terrorism" and accused Russia of "genocidal aggression." He also said that the attack "couldn't even be called a beastly act - because it would be an insult to beasts," and "Who could launch a missile at them? Who? Only absolute evil." In response to the attack, Zelenskyy criticized countries supporting Russia, saying "all those who help Russia circumvent sanctions are criminals."  Kharkiv governor Oleh Synyehubov described the attack as one of the region's "bloodiest crimes." Humanitarian Coordinator Denise Brown said; "Our thoughts are also with the people of Ukraine, who had to witness today, once again, another barbaric consequence of Russia’s invasion... Attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure are prohibited under international humanitarian law and they must stop immediately." On 5 October 2023, the Russian Armed Forces launched an Iskander ballistic missile at residents gathered in a memorial service at a shop and cafe in Hroza, Kupiansk Raion, Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine, killing 59 and injuring at least 7 others. Among those killed in th The attack took place as part of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

              An apartment building after Russia's strike on Pavlohrad Friday afternoon.

the September 2024 Pavlohrad strike. 

Additionally, ongoing large-scale multi-wave missile and drone barrages continue to impact regions like Kyiv and beyond, resulting in casualties and emergency disruptions.  KYIV, Sept 6 (Reuters) - A Russian missile attack on Friday killed one civilian and wounded at least 30 other people, including three children, in the Ukrainian city of Pavlohrad, regional governor Serhiy Lysak said.  Lysak, governor for the central Dnipropetrovsk region, said the attack caused several fires across the city and damaged a residential high-rise building.  "Thirty people were injured in Pavlohrad. Three of them are children," he said on the Telegram messaging app. He said that a nine-year-old girl and two boys, aged four and 11, had suffered in the attack.

Russia has conducted thousands of missile, drone, and artillery strikes against Ukraine since its full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022, targeting cities, energy infrastructure, and civilians. 

Major Types of Attacks and Weaponry

Cruise Missile                                  

                                           Tomahawk cruise Missile

The surface-to-surface Fateh 110 ballistic missile (seen here) is made in and by Iran and is thought to be one of the ballistic missiles used by Iran in the Jan. 7, 2020, attack on U.S. airbases in Iraq. Mohsen Shandiz/Corbis via Getty Images

Aerial & Missile Strikes: Russia regularly uses Kh-101, Kalibr, and Kh-22 cruise missiles, Iskander and Kinzhal ballistic missiles, and Iranian-designed Shahed/Geran attack drones.  

                                      example of Ballistic missile

                  What is difference between a ballistic and a cruise missile?
A ballistic missile and a cruise missile are quite different from each other. Cruise missiles are self-propelled for the most part of their flight, flying in a relatively straight line and at lower altitudes due to rocket propellant. In contrast, a ballistic missile's flight path is like a large arc up and back down again.                                                 

                        


Energy & Critical Infrastructure: Systematic targeting of power plants, sub-stations, and dams (including the Kakhovka and Dnipro dams) has caused widespread blackouts, heating failures, and severe economic impacts.





Artillery & Shelling: Millions of artillery shells and cluster munitions have been fired into frontline and border oblasts, including Kyiv, Kharkiv, Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, and Mykolaiv.


Russian forces have targeted civilian, residential, energy, and transport infrastructure across multiple regions in Ukraine between 2024 and 2026, with heavy campaigns focusing on major cities and the power grid.
Key Regions and Cities Hit (2024–2026)
Kyiv & Kyiv Region: Repeatedly targeted by massive waves of Shahed/Geran-2 drones and cruise/ballistic missiles, damaging apartment blocks, heating systems, and causing emergency rolling blackouts. 
Kharkiv & Kharkiv Oblast: Struck continuously by glide bombs, S-300/S-400 missiles, and drones, heavily damaging residential districts, shopping centers, and municipal power facilities. 
Donetsk Oblast: Frequent strikes on cities like Kramatorsk and frontline towns, damaging energy hubs, industrial plants, and civilian housing. 
Sumy Oblast: Heavy cross-border and long-range drone/artillery impacts on residential and energy infrastructure. 
Rivne & Volyn Regions: Target of multi-region coordinated missile and drone strikes hitting energy grids and civilian apartment blocks (such as October 2026 attacks cutting power to over a million people). 
Dnipro: Target of severe missile and drone barrages causing high civilian casualties and structural damage to city buildings.
Western & Southern Ports / Black Sea Coastal Zones: Russian strikes have expanded to hit grain and cargo vessels, chemical tankers near the Danube River, and border crossings near Romania and Bulgaria. 


Resource:
Wikipedia