PRYLUKY, UKRAINE -- Russian missile and drone strikes pounded Ukraine on Russian leader Vladimir Putin's birthday, leaving dozens of people dead or injured in one of "the most vile" attacks in recent times, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
"The Russians wanted to strike painfully and demonstratively," Zelenskyy wrote on X, adding that the October 7 attack included "70 missiles in total, many of them ballistic, as well as Shahed-drones" launched on 12 Ukrainian regions.
The death toll across the country rose to 19, including two in the capital, Kyiv, and 14 in a strike that also injured 50 people, including seven children, in Pryluky in Ukraine's northern Chernihiv region, which borders Russia.
There, Zelenskyy said, Russian forces "destroyed" a residential building "as a birthday 'gift' to Putin," while at least 10 other such buildings were damaged elsewhere, along with Ukraine's energy infrastructure, one of Moscow's other "key targets."
Reporting from the aftermath in Pryluky, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service showed a five-story apartment building torn apart by the Russian strike with its roof destroyed, windows blown out, and debris scattered around the site.
Ukrainian police said search operations were still under way as emergency workers were seen recovering bodies from beneath the rubble.
With a fifth wartime winter approaching, Russian strikes on Ukraine have become a daily occurrence. Moscow has previously sought to pressure Kyiv into accepting its hard-line demands by attacking the country's energy infrastructure and leaving thousands without heat or electricity amid freezing temperatures.
Since this year, however, Kyiv has increasingly responded to Russian attacks with a campaign of long-range strikes targeting military and energy sites inside Russia and middle-range strikes targeting its key logistics in Ukraine's occupied eastern and southern regions.
Tanker Hit In Black Sea
Following the latest Russian attacks, Zelenskyy later reported on what he called Kyiv's "just responses." He said Ukrainian forces had targeted two of Russia's oil facilities and a military training ground overnight on October 7, adding, "There was also a response in the Black Sea."
Hours earlier, Russia's Transport Ministry said that a Liberian-flagged tanker had been attacked by "naval drones" near the country's major southern city of Sochi, known for its luxury resorts.
The ministry reported an intense fire following the attack, saying that "crude oil is burning openly" on the surface of the Black Sea. It later added that the crew of 23, all Indian citizens, had been rescued and the fire had been extinguished.
According to the Ukrainian monitoring site BlackSeaNews, the vessel was used by Russia as part of its so-called shadow fleet, a network of vessels used to transport Russian fuel and evade sanctions.
Sochi's local authorities said access to the city's coast and beaches was being restricted. Previous Ukrainian strikes on energy targets in southern Russia have caused oil slicks, prompted beach closures, and led to toxic black rainfall.
The developments came amid renewed US interest in negotiating a diplomatic settlement to the long-running war. While US President Donald Trump has long said it is one of the key goals of his presidency, Kyiv and Moscow remain far apart in their negotiating positions.
Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion almost five years ago, the Kremlin has shown no willingness to compromise on its key demands, including full control over Ukraine's key eastern Donetsk region, a stronghold Russian forces have not yet been able to capture.
