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Russian drone strike hits Zaporizhzhia apartment block and injures three

Firefighters look up at a residential building that was struck by a Russian drone, which injured several people. Tuesday, 16 December, 2025.
Firefighters look up at a residential building that was struck by a Russian drone, which injured several people. Tuesday, 16 December, 2025. Copyright  EBU
Copyright EBU
By Evelyn Ann-Marie Dom & Emma de Ruiter
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Separate strikes targeted Odesa's warehouses and energy infrastructure, while Ukrainian forces continue their counteroffensive in Kupyansk, where up to 200 Russian troops remain encircled.

Several people were injured when a Russian drone struck a nine-storey residential building in the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia early on Tuesday.

Ukraine's State Emergency Service reported several floors of the building were burned, adding that five people were rescued from the building's upper floors and three people were receiving treatment for injuries.

The attack also led to temporary power outages across the region and damaged a commercial facility.

Russia launched 69 drones into Ukraine overnight, Ukraine's Air Force reported, of which its air defences shot down 57.

Moscow also targeted Odesa overnight into Tuesday, causing a large fire to break out in warehouses containing household appliances.

"Fortunately, there are no inured or dead. The elimination operation was complicated by the repeated air raid alarms," spokesperson for Odesa State Emergency Service, Marina Averina said.

"Rescuers found shelters. More than 60 firefighters, 20 pieces of equipment and also fire units of the national guard of Ukraine have eliminated the fire," Averina added.

Just a day earlier, the city's energy infrastructure was targeted by Russian strikes. Energy workers restored electricity to 330,000 households on Tuesday. Tens of thousands of households in Odesa remain without electricity as repairs are ongoing.

Since the beginning of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, Russia has been targeting Ukraine's energy infrastructure, causing power outages across the country, particularly during the winter period, leaving millions of Ukrainians without electricity and heating.

Ukraine’s counteroffensive in Kupyansk

Ukraine’s forces continue their counteroffensive in Kupyansk in the northeastern region of Kharkiv.

Ukrainian Joint Forces Group Spokesperson Viktor Trehubov said Kyiv troops are clearing the area and avoiding engaging in urban combat.

According to Trehubov, between 100 and 200 Russian troops remain encircled in Kupiansk as of Monday, with their command’s limited ability to provide support.

They still receive some drone supply drops, Trehubov said, noting that Russian drones cannot fly over certain areas and, when they do, their carrying capacity is limited, while the occasional drops also expose Russian positions to Ukrainian forces.

Ukrainian military sources revealed that Russian forces continue attempting infiltration missions to reinforce positions in Kupyansk through a gas pipeline, but Ukrainian forces have blocked the pipeline.

Last Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the front in Kupyansk and recorded a video in front of the city's partially destroyed entrance sign.

Even with the video evidence of Zelenskyy’s visit, Moscow denies losing control over Kupyansk and insists that Russian troops still occupy the town.

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