Vengeful Putin blitzes Ukraine power stations plunging 9million into darkness as his troops flee in humiliating retreat

 

Vladimir Putin's forces attacked Ukrainian power stations and plunged nine million into darkness after his forces fled in a humiliating retreat.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said cruise missile attacks had caused power outages in multiple regions including Kharkiv and Donetsk that affected millions.

Ukraine has described the massive blackout as an "act of revenge" after the Kremlin's recent humiliation on the battlefield.

It follows reports on Saturday that Putin's forces suffered heavy losses in Kharkiv - potentially changing the course of the war.

Over the past few days,

Ukrainian forces regained control of the majority of Russian-occupied territory in the region in a wrongful offensive

.

The Russians were running for their lives while President Vladimir Putin faced the worst humiliating setback yet in his disastrous campaign.

Angry President Zelensky also accused Moscow of deliberately hitting civilian infrastructure in missile strikes.

"There are no military installations. The goal is to deprive people of light and heat," President Zelensky said in a statement on social media.

He went on to blame "Russian terrorists" for "complete power outages in the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions, partial power outages in Zaporizhzhya, Dnipropetrovsk and Sumy regions."

After today's attacks, officials in the Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk and Poltava regions said shortly after the blackout was announced, the power would be restored.

Ihor Terekhov, the mayor of Kharkiv city, said work was underway to restore electricity, and some areas reported that electricity was restored around 1 a.m. on Monday local time.

This is a despicable revenge on the Russian aggressor for the successes of our army at the front, in particular - in the Kharkiv region, said Terekhov. I ask everyone to remain calm."

Ukrainian sources on social media said its air defenses "shot down nine of the 11 Kalibar and Kh-101 missiles launched in Ukraine".

While the Kremlin's attack also disrupted railways across the east, including Kharkiv.

Video footage distributed by Kirillo Tymoshenko in the Ukrainian Presidential Administration showed a fire at an industrial site, with emergency services on site.

Among the facilities that were bombed was the CHPP-5 Kharkiv power plant, said Mikhailo Podolyak, Ukraine's chief presidential aide.

Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko believes the recent Russian attacks were an "act of desperation in the wake of Russia's heavy losses and retreat in eastern Ukraine".

on Saturday,

Russian soldiers reportedly raised a white flag as they fled a Ukrainian lightning advance that reclaimed vast swaths of land.