Russian strikes killed 8, injure 83 across Ukraine; another key Kyiv bridge was targeted

Russian attacks across Ukraine killed at least eight civilians and injured 83 others over the past day, according to October 3 regional authorities' reports.

The Ukrainian Air Force said Russia launched 157 Shahed and Gerbera drones, including jet-powered Shaheds and Parodiya decoys. Ukrainian forces intercepted 131 drones, while strikes were recorded at 12 locations and falling debris at five others.

In Kyiv, a Russian strike hit the Northern Bridge over the Dnipro River, injuring two people, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said. The attack followed several strikes on Kyiv’s major bridges, including the Pivdennyi (South) Bridge, which was hit by a drone on Oct. 2.

Kharkiv Oblast suffered some of the heaviest casualties, with five people killed and 49 injured in Russian glide bomb and drone attacks. Two people were killed and 42 injured in strikes on Kharkiv, damaging homes, an educational facility, offices, vehicles and power infrastructure.

Russian attacks also injured four people in Dnipro, nine in Donetsk Oblast, four in Kherson Oblast, two in Zaporizhzhia Oblast and three in Mykolaiv Oblast. In Sumy Oblast, three people were killed and 10 injured in overnight artillery, glide bomb and drone strikes. The attacks damaged residential, industrial, port, and other civilian infrastructure across several regions.

Some civilians managed to flee occupied Oleshky amid a dire humanitarian crisis

Dozens of residents in the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky in Ukraine’s Kherson region are leaving on their own — walking, riding bicycles, or using mopeds — in a desperate attempt to find food and survive. Ukraine’s Human Rights Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets shared video footage showing civilians departing the city, noting that many are risking their lives simply to buy basic supplies for themselves and their families. People fully understand the roads may be mined, yet they see no alternative, as staying behind has become equally dangerous.

The city has been under a near-total humanitarian blockade for months. No regular food deliveries have reached Oleshky since late May, leaving residents without adequate food, clean water, or medicine. Ukrainian officials estimate that around 2,000 people, including dozens of children, remain trapped in the city. Occupying forces have blocked official evacuation routes and rejected proposals for a safe humanitarian corridor, forcing civilians into an impossible choice between starvation and the risk of stepping on landmines.

Lubinets has appealed to international partners to help organize a secure corridor so that people can leave safely. Ukraine has repeatedly offered to facilitate evacuations, including with the involvement of the International Committee of the Red Cross, but Russia has refused all such proposals. Without urgent action, the remaining civilians in Oleshky face a growing risk of preventable deaths as winter approaches.

Putin admitted that he refused the energy and maritime truce proposed by the US

Russian President Vladimir Putin has openly rejected proposals for a limited energy and maritime ceasefire with Ukraine. Speaking at the Valdai Discussion Club on October 1, 2026, Putin dismissed the idea of mutual restraints on attacks as “simply ridiculous” and confirmed Moscow’s refusal.

The proposals, discussed with U.S. involvement and supported by several countries, envisioned Ukraine stopping strikes on Russian oil refineries in exchange for Russia halting attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure and civilian shipping in the Black Sea. When asked directly whether this meant a “no,” Putin replied: “Yes, no.”

Putin argued that Russia already has sufficient diesel fuel and saw little benefit in the arrangement, while accusing Ukraine of initiating attacks on Russian tankers. His remarks effectively close the door on a limited truce that Western mediators had hoped could reduce pressure on energy markets and civilian infrastructure ahead of winter.

Kyiv is preparing pontoon crossings in case of bridge strikes and planning a tunnel under the Dnipro River 

Ukraine plans to begin construction next week on several reserve pontoon crossings across the Dnipro River in Kyiv to maintain traffic if the city’s bridges are damaged, Recovery Minister Mykola Kalashnyk said.

The plan calls for building earth dams with pontoon crossings that could be constructed within about three months. The crossings are expected to provide at least half the capacity of Kyiv’s existing bridges, which carry about 600,000 vehicles between the city’s two banks each day.

“Urgent solutions include a dam and a pontoon crossing, which can be built quickly,” Kalashnyk said. The project will be carried out jointly by the ministry, the State Agency for Restoration, the military and Kyiv authorities. Similar contingency projects are being considered in other regions and beyond the Dnipro River.

Authorities are also examining longer-term alternatives, including rapidly assembled concrete structures and a tunnel beneath the Dnipro. Kalashnyk said a tunnel could cost tens of billions of hryvnias and would require support from international partners.

The government’s first priority, however, remains protecting Kyiv’s existing bridges from Russian attacks and ensuring they can be quickly repaired if damaged. “Our first task is to prevent strikes,” Kalashnyk said. “The second part is to provide protection. The third is rapid recovery. And the fourth is to make decisions regarding alternative reserve crossings.”