Russia Launches Drone Attack on Kyiv 2nd Night in a Row

People walk at dusk in central Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
People walk at dusk in central Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
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Russia Launches Drone Attack on Kyiv 2nd Night in a Row

People walk at dusk in central Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
People walk at dusk in central Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Russia launched several waves of drone attacks on Kyiv early on Sunday for the second night in a row, stepping up its assaults on the Ukrainian capital after several weeks of pause, the city's military administration said.

"The enemy's UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) were launched in many groups and attacked Kyiv in waves, from different directions, at the same time constantly changing the vectors of movement along the route," Serhiy Popko, head of the Kyiv's military administration, said on the Telegram messaging app.
"That is why the air raid alerts were announced several times in the capital."
Popko said that according to preliminary information Ukraine's air defense systems hit close to 10 Iranian-made Shahed kamikaze drones in Kyiv and its outskirts.
There have been no initial reports of "critical damage" or casualties, he said.
Reuters could not independently verify the reports. There was no immediate comment from Russia.
Russia started carrying out strikes on Ukraine's energy, military and transport infrastructure in October 2022, six months after Moscow's troops failed to take over the capital and withdrew to Ukraine's east and south.
Over last winter, Russia pounded Ukraine with hundreds of missiles and drones, leaving millions without electricity, heating and water during the coldest months of the year - before easing the assaults in the summer.
After a pause of 52 days, Moscow resumed airstrikes on Kyiv earlier this month. On Saturday, Ukrainian officials said all drones heading towards Kyiv were destroyed, but some hit infrastructure facilities elsewhere in Ukraine.



Traffic on French High-Speed Trains Gradually Improving after Sabotage

Workers operate to reconnect the signal box to the track in its technical ducts in Vald' Yerres, near Chartres on July 26, 2024, as France's high-speed rail network was hit by an attack disrupting the transport system, hours before the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. (AFP)
Workers operate to reconnect the signal box to the track in its technical ducts in Vald' Yerres, near Chartres on July 26, 2024, as France's high-speed rail network was hit by an attack disrupting the transport system, hours before the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. (AFP)
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Traffic on French High-Speed Trains Gradually Improving after Sabotage

Workers operate to reconnect the signal box to the track in its technical ducts in Vald' Yerres, near Chartres on July 26, 2024, as France's high-speed rail network was hit by an attack disrupting the transport system, hours before the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. (AFP)
Workers operate to reconnect the signal box to the track in its technical ducts in Vald' Yerres, near Chartres on July 26, 2024, as France's high-speed rail network was hit by an attack disrupting the transport system, hours before the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. (AFP)

Traffic on France's TGV high-speed trains was gradually returning to normal on Saturday after engineers worked overnight repairing sabotaged signal stations and cables that caused travel chaos on Friday, the opening day of the Paris Olympic Games.

In Friday's pre-dawn attacks on the high-speed rail network vandals damaged infrastructure along the lines connecting Paris with cities such as Lille in the north, Bordeaux in the west and Strasbourg in the east. Another attack on the Paris-Marseille line was foiled, French rail operator SNCF said.

There has been no immediate claim of responsibility.

"On the Eastern high-speed line, traffic resumed normally this morning at 6:30 a.m. while on the North, Brittany and South-West high-speed lines, 7 out of 10 trains on average will run with delays of 1 to 2 hours," SNCF said in a statement on Saturday morning.

"At this stage, traffic will remain disrupted on Sunday on the North axis and should improve on the Atlantic axis for weekend returns," it added.

SNCF reiterated that transport plans for teams competing in the Olympics would be guaranteed.