Star Metro - Russia warns diplomats to leave Kyiv over new strikes threat

Moscow has ramped up its pummelling of Kyiv, launching waves of drones at the city, targeting key infrastructure and putting the capital on a near-constant state of alert against attacks.

The strike on the Northern Bridge on Saturday morning wounded two people and damaged road surface and trolleybus overhead wires restricting traffic, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.

AFP reporters saw traces of an explosion on a pedestrian walkway and technicians repairing power lines on the bridge.

Hours after the attack, the Russian authorities warned of more strikes, issuing a fresh call for diplomats and foreigners to leave the city and refrain from visiting Ukraine.

"We note with concern that not everyone has heeded these warnings, and that individuals are knowingly exposing themselves to mortal danger," the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement.

The Russian ministry also stated that "responsibility for any potential negative consequences rests entirely with those who ignore this warning."

Moscow issued a similar warning in May but heads of state and governments from countries backing Ukraine have defied it by travelling to the war-torn country and the capital in show of support.

On Friday, Klitschko said the city was in a "very dramatic situation" and should now be on a war footing as the enemy was "tearing Kyiv apart" with strikes on bridges and energy infrastructure.

President Volodymyr Zelensky accused his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, of ripping up the rulebook of armed conflict by sanctioning massive attacks on civilian areas, an accusation the Kremlin has rejected.

Traffic chaos

Kyiv has been increasingly under aerial bombardment in recent months, with the attacks and alerts disrupting daily life and sowing traffic chaos.

Long lines of stationary cars and buses clogged major roads on Friday as commuters sought alternate routes, with some forced to continue their journeys on foot.

Air raid sirens warning of approaching threats sound almost round the clock, urging the city's estimated three million people to seek shelter.

Strikes across the country in recent days have also caused power outages in several regions in the east, north and centre, with grid operator Ukrenergo urging consumers to limit usage even as demand increases with colder weather.

Ukraine braces for another difficult winter. Last year, heating and power were cut for days on end as temperatures plunged to -20C.

The grinding war, which began with Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, has turned into Europe's bloodiest conflict since World War II.

Ukraine has appeared to stabilise the front in recent months, but depleted air-defence stocks since the start of the US-Israeli war in Iran have left its cities exposed to Russian barrages.

The US-brokered peace efforts are effectively frozen as Moscow has shown no signs of dropping its maximalist conditions to end the war, including a demand that Ukraine cede territory in the east that Russia's troops have not captured.

Y.Walker--SMC