Russia struck areas of eastern and southern Ukraine with artillery and missiles on Friday and Saturday, killing at least three people and wounding four others, officials said.
The strikes come as both sides prepare for a grueling winter of fighting and as Russia tries to suppress a Ukrainian counteroffensive to regain occupied territory.
Russia fired hundreds of shells into Ukrainian-controlled parts of Kherson region in the south on Friday, local governor Oleksandr Prokudin said.
"The Russian military hit residential areas of the region's settlements. As a result of Russian aggression, one person was killed and one more was wounded," he said Saturday morning.
In separate attacks, the head of Ukraine's central Dnipropetrovsk region said Russia fired a missile at a group of dachas, a type of cottage, in Kryvyi Rih -- President Volodymyr Zelensky's hometown – killing a 60-year-old man and wounding a woman.
"She is in a serious condition in hospital. The attack caused a fire, which rescuers have already extinguished," Dnipropetrovsk governor Sergiy Lysak said Friday evening.
He later said on Saturday that Russian artillery strikes on Nikopol, a city of about 100,000 people on the river Dnipro, had killed one person.
"The enemy has once again fired on peaceful Nikopol with heavy artillery. Unfortunately, a man died as a result of the attack," Nikopol mayor Oleksandr Sayuk said.
Russian shelling near Kupyansk in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region and strikes on Avdiivka in eastern Donetsk region wounded at least two people on Friday, officials said.
Fighting and shelling in and around Avdiivka has escalated in recent weeks as Russia tries to encircle and capture the strategically important town.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.