Zaporizhzhia strikes

Overview

From 27 February 2022, as part of the Russo-Ukrainian war (2022–present), the Zaporizhzhia Oblast has been repeatedly hit by Russian munitions as part of the Southern Ukraine campaign. In the administrative centre of Zaporizhzhia, significant proportions of civilian infrastructure and housing have been damaged or destroyed. In a report dated 24 February 2026, the Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration reports that 812 residents of the region have been killed, including 45 children. It also reports that more than 3,400 people have been injured. Strikes continue to occur on a regular basis, sometimes numbering in hundreds or thousands of munitions per day.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, Zaporizhzhia and its surrounding region came under repeated Russian shelling and bombing as part of the southern Ukraine offensive beginning 27 February 2022. The sustained strikes resulted in the destruction of thirty to forty percent of the city's infrastructure, marking Zaporizhzhia as a significant target in the broader southern axis of Russia's campaign. The degradation of urban infrastructure at this scale reflects the character of Russian operational pressure in southern Ukraine during the opening phase of the full-scale war.