Lights out: Ukrainians struggle to cope as energy sector mauled by unrelenting Russian bombing

Russia made clear early on that it considered civilian infrastructure a legitimate target as its armies sought to conquer Ukraine.

Ukrainians say attacks in recent weeks have been more ferocious than ever as Russian forces press an initiative in the country’s south and east, impairing much of the energy infrastructure and costing an estimated $1 billion worth of damages.

A tour of the battered environs of Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city with a prewar population of nearly 1.5 million, offers vivid evidence of the physical and personal devastation of the infrastructure wars.