Russian attacks kill 4 in Ukraine as Moscow and Kyiv prepare for visit by US envoys

Overnight, four people were killed in Ukraine due to Russian attacks, as Moscow and Kyiv prepare for a visit by U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to discuss peace in the country's 4 1/2-year-old invasion. The planned visit, which includes both Witkoff and Kushner, aims to reignite peace talks amid escalating aerial assaults from both sides. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had hoped to see the duo in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, on Sunday.

The intensity of the air war between Russia and Ukraine has surged, with troops finding it challenging to make headway along the 1,250-kilometer front line. Russia has been utilizing fast-flying, jet-powered drones, resulting in a constant alarm of air-raid sirens in Kyiv. Amid the ongoing hostilities, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on Friday that Ukraine would cease air attacks during the U.S. envoy's visit and urged Russia to do the same.

On Saturday, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy took to social media to report that Russia had launched overnight strikes on Kyiv and Boryspil International Airports. He linked these attacks to the preparations for the U.S. visit, stating that Russia had become increasingly dangerous in terms of drone and missile activity in the sky. Zelenskyy emphasized that there would be no threats to diplomacy from Ukraine's side.

Russian attacks claimed four lives and injured five more at an industrial facility in Ukraine's southern Dnipropetrovsk region. Among the deceased were a locksmith, an electrician, a plumber, and a machinist, all working at the site. A 62-year-old man was also wounded, and several private homes and an apartment building were damaged in another attack on the region's Nikopol district.

In a statement, Russia's Ministry of Defense claimed that it had targeted two metallurgical plants in the region, describing them as significant suppliers of metal products for Ukraine's military production.