Electricity returns to Kyiv after Russian attack – DW – 10/11/2025

Russia’s staunchest ally Belarus said it has started inspecting the war preparedness of the country’s military.

The Defense Ministry said that as part of the investigation, “several” units would redeploy to unspecified “specified areas” and carry out unidentified activities.

The ministry did not provide details about the timing, scope or scale of the inspection.

Such inspections are not uncommon in Belarus. However, it follows the “Zapped” joint strategic exercise with Russia in September.

The war games included rehearsals for the launch of Russian tactical nuclear weapons and the Oresnik hypersonic missile.

Belarus maintains a close alliance with Russia, relying heavily on Moscow for economic and military aid, with President Alexander Lukashenko often at odds with the policies of Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Twenty-three Ukrainian children and teenagers have been brought from Russian-held areas of Ukraine to the area under Kiev’s control, President Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff said.

Andrey Yermak, writing on the Telegram messaging app, said the rescue was carried out under the president’s “Bring Kids Back UA” program, aimed at bringing children deported from Russia or confined in Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine to safer areas.

Yermak said the returnees included two sisters who refused to attend Russian schools set up by Russian authorities despite threats to remove them from their mother’s care.

Kiev said another child and his mother were not allowed to leave the occupied territories because they had a relative serving in the Ukrainian army.

Ukraine says Russia has illegally deported or forcibly displaced more than 19,500 children to Russia and Belarus in violation of the Geneva Conventions.

Research from the Yale School of Public Health published in September suggests the number may be closer to 35,000.

Moscow says the children were taken to keep them safe from wartime hostilities.

Ukraine’s largest private energy company said power was restored to most Kiev residents on Saturday, a day after Russia attacked the war-torn country’s power grid.

DTEK said “the main work of restoring power supply” has been completed, but warned of some local disruption.

Friday’s attacks knocked out power to about 800,000 residents of Ukraine’s capital, as well as eight other regions of the country.

DTEK later said it had restored power to 240,000 homes in Ukraine’s Odessa region.

Moscow said it had used Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and strike drones to target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.

Officials said the attacks killed two people and injured at least 20 others across the country, with residential buildings also being damaged.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko described the attack as “one of the largest concentrated attacks” against Ukraine’s power grid.

Since 2022, Russia has tried every year to disrupt Ukraine’s energy supplies before the harsh winter season, in a bid to depress public morale.

DW brings you the latest on Russia’s war in Ukraine, where residents of the capital Kiev have restored electricity in the past hours following major Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities.

Ukraine says it has rescued 23 children illegally deported to Russian-occupied territory.

Estonia has warned NATO that Russia will try to carry out further provocations after Moscow intruded into the Baltic nation’s airspace last month.

Meanwhile, Belarus says it is testing its military’s readiness a month after the latest round of joint military maneuvers with Russia.