Russian forces strike several Ukraine areas

KHERSON, UKRAINE: Shelling by Russian forces struck several areas in eastern and southern Ukraine overnight as utility crews continued a scramble to restore power, water and heating following widespread strikes in recent weeks, officials said on Sunday.

After a blistering barrage of Russian artillery strikes on at least two occasions over the past two weeks, infrastructure teams in Ukraine were fanning out in around-the-clock deployments to restore key basic services as many Ukrainians dealt with only a few hours of electricity per day - if any.

Ukrenergo, the state power grid operator, said on Sunday that electricity producers are now supplying about 80% of demand. That’s an improvement from Saturday’s 75%, the company said.

Russia may leave N-plant The head of Ukraine’s state-run nuclear energy firm said on Sunday there were signs that Russian forces might be preparing to leave the vast Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant which they seized in March soon after their invasion.

Such a move would be a major battlefield change in the partially-occupied southeastern Zaporizhzhia region where the front line has hardly shifted for months. Repeated shelling around the plant has spurred fears of a nuclear catastrophe.

“In recent weeks we are effectively receiving information that signs have appeared that they are possibly preparing to leave the (plant),” Petro Kotin, head of Energoatom, said on national television.

The IAEA chief met a Russian delegation in Istanbul last week to discuss setting up a protection zone around the plant to prevent a nuclear disaster.