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by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief
MOSCOW/KYIV/BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Millions of Ukrainians spent Christmas without electricity after Russian strikes on energy infrastructure killed civilians and triggered widespread power outages, Ukrainian officials said.
At least four people were reportedly killed and more than a dozen injured in attacks across several regions, including Kherson, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, and Odesa.
In Chernihiv, a drone strike on a residential building killed an elderly woman and critically wounded others, while shelling in Kherson killed a market worker and destroyed stall, officials said.
Ukraine responded with strikes deep inside Russia, hitting the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery in the Rostov region with British-supplied Storm Shadow cruise missiles, according to Ukraine’s General Staff, which reported multiple explosions at the site.
Officials said the refinery supplies fuel to Russian forces.
Ukrainian long-range drones also set oil product tanks ablaze at Russia’s port of Temryuk in the Krasnodar region and struck a major gas processing plant in Orenburg, hundreds of miles (kilometers) from the Ukrainian border, as Kyiv seeks to cut Moscow’s war revenues, authorities raid.
Ukrainian forces also reported a surprise takeover of a town near the front lines, dealing a setback to Russian positions despite winter conditions, underscoring Kyiv’s capacity for sudden counter-operations.
DISSENT IN RUSSIA LEADS TO PRISON
Criticism of the war inside Russia remains dangerous.
A Moscow court sentenced left-wing Kremlin critic Sergei Udaltsov to six years in a penal colony Thursday for “justifying terrorism,” a case rights groups say highlights the tightening crackdown under Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The fighting has heightened regional tensions. NATO member Poland said it scrambled fighter jets to intercept a Russian reconnaissance aircraft near its airspace over the Baltic Sea, as allies remain on heightened alert amid repeated incidents.
However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who has visited frontline troops, said he held “very good” talks with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and U.S. presidential adviser Jared Kushner on steps toward ending the war.
Zelenskyy said the hour-long discussions covered formats for meetings, substance, and possible timelines, describing “good ideas” aimed at bringing lasting peace closer.
Moscow said it is reviewing the U.S.-backed peace proposal discussed with Zelenskyy and acknowledged “slow but steady progress” in talks with Washington.
However Russia accused Western European governments of trying to undermine negotiations.
Russian officials have rejected calls for a Christmas ceasefire and said any settlement must address what they call Russia’s security concerns. Despite diplomatic contacts, the war showed no sign of easing, with civilians continuing to bear the brunt as winter deepens.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
Russia has significantly expanded its intelligence sharing and military cooperation with Iran, providing satellite imagery and advanced drone technology to bolster Tehran’s ability to target U.S. forces across the Middle East, according to a Wall Street Journal exclusive citing officials familiar with the matter.
An Israeli family devastated by a recent missile strike near the central city of Beit Shemesh, west of Jerusalem, has received financial assistance from a U.S. evangelical leader, as the ongoing war involving Iran has slowed—but not halted—the arrival of Jewish immigrants to the country.
Suspected Islamic Fulani herdsmen have killed a pastor and abducted other Christians in northwestern Nigeria’s Kaduna state, a region marked by recurring religious and ethnic tensions, despite U.S.-backed efforts to curb extremism that has killed thousands of Christians annually, Worthy News learned Tuesday.
The Senate voted 51–48 on Tuesday to begin debate on the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act, a Republican-backed bill that would require proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote and photo identification to cast a ballot.
Two people have been killed near Tel Aviv during what Israeli authorities describe as an Iranian missile barrage, with emergency responders saying police were dealing with “several” impact sites in and around Israel’s economic hub.
Since President Donald Trump has taken office, 307 Iranians who attempted to illegally enter the country have been apprehended by Border Patrol agents.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced Tuesday that it has pushed additional deeper into southern Lebanon, expanding its buffer zone along the northern border as Hezbollah continues launching rockets and drones into northern Israel.
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