Ukrainian strike kills 63 Russian servicemen

Local residents carry their belongings as they leave their home ruined in a rocket attack in Zaporizhzhya, Ukraine on Jan 1, 2023. (ANDRIY ANDRIYENKO / AP)

MOSCOW/KYIV/TEHRAN – Ukrainian troops fired rockets on the temporary deployment facility of the Russian troops in the city of Makiivka in Donetsk, killing at least 63 Russian servicemen, the Russian Defense Ministry said Monday.

Ukraine shelled the area with six US-manufactured HIMARS rocket launchers, the ministry said, adding the Russian air defense systems shot down two rockets.

"All necessary assistance and support will be provided to the families and friends of the deceased servicemen," it said.

Meanwhile, energy infrastructure facilities were damaged as a result of another massive Russian drone attack on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv overnight Monday, local authorities said.

Russia attacked Ukraine overnight Monday with 39 Iranian-made kamikaze drones Shahed-136 and Shahed-131, two Orlan-10 drones and a Kh-59 missile. All air targets have been destroyed by the Ukrainian air defense, the Air Force Command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said on Facebook

Parts of Kyiv were left without electricity and heating after the air strike, which also injured a 19-year-old man, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko wrote on Telegram.

A critical infrastructure facility and private houses were damaged in the Kyiv region due to the attacks, Oleksii Kuleba, head of the Kyiv Regional Military Administration, said on Telegram.

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Russia attacked Ukraine overnight Monday with 39 Iranian-made kamikaze drones Shahed-136 and Shahed-131, two Orlan-10 drones and a Kh-59 missile. All air targets have been destroyed by the Ukrainian air defense, the Air Force Command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said on Facebook.

In addition, Klitschko said at least one person was killed and 22 others were injured in Kyiv in air strikes carried out by Russian forces on Saturday.

The National Palace of Arts "Ukraina," a hotel, a stadium and a private house were damaged in missile attacks on the capital, said Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the Ukrainian president's office.

According to local governors, at least six people were wounded in the Russian strikes in the southern Mykolaiv region and four civilians were injured in the western Khmelnytsky region.

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On Saturday, Russia's armed forces launched a strike with high-precision long-range air-based weapons at the defense industrial facilities of Ukraine involved in manufacturing assault unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that are designed for committing terrorist attacks against Russia, the Defense Ministry said Sunday.

The parking ramps and launch sites of the UAVs have been neutralized, it said, adding that the goal of the attack has been reached.

People stand in Sophia Square before curfew on New Year's Eve in Kyiv, Ukraine on Dec 31, 2022. (FELIPE DANA / AP)

Iran is not a part of the conflict in Ukraine, and baseless accusations against Iran will not help solve the issue.

Nasser Kanaani, Iranian foreign ministry's spokesman 

Not involved in conflict

Separately, the Iranian foreign ministry's spokesman said on Monday that Iran is not part of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, rejecting "baseless" accusations against Tehran.

"Iran is not a part of the conflict in Ukraine, and baseless accusations against Iran will not help solve the issue," Nasser Kanaani said during a press conference.

Iranian and Ukrainian officials have exchanged views over the allegations, and neither Ukraine nor other accusers could find any evidence for their accusations, he noted.

"Iran's defense cooperation (with other countries) is based on common interests and is carried out in compliance with international laws and regulations," Kanaani said, adding the defense cooperation between Iran and Russia was carried out before the Ukrainian conflict.

The Ukrainian authorities should stop making "baseless and false accusations" against Iran but consider appropriate solutions to the crisis, the Iranian spokesman advised.

READ MORE: Iran defense chief: Ukraine had no proof of Iranian drones

Ukraine and Western countries have accused Iran of exporting suicide drones to Russia for use in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, which Iran has repeatedly rejected as "baseless."