Russia slammed Ukraine with waves of missiles Saturday, killing at least 10 civilians and wounding scores more with a strike on an apartment building and pummeling critical infrastructure.
The stepped-up assault came as the United Kingdom pledged to send tanks to Ukraine.
Ukraine authorities said its air defense shot down some of the incoming missiles, but at least some got through, including the one that toppled a large portion of a housing complex in the south-central city of Dnipro.
At least five people died and at least 64 were injured when the one-ton rocket landed on the nine-story residential complex.
The BBC reported an unknown number were trapped beneath the rubble, as citizens joined emergency workers in human chains to try to free them in a scene described as one of “profound shock and frantic action.”
At least 20 were pulled from the smoking ruins.
Russia has been pounding Ukraine’s energy infrastructure with missiles and drones since October, causing sweeping blackouts and disruptions to heating and running water as winter sets in.
The attacks Saturday damaged energy facilities in at least six Ukrainian regions, the BBC reported.
Russia, which invaded last February, has been pounding Ukraine’s energy infrastructure with missiles and drones since October, causing sweeping blackouts and disruptions to central heating and running water as winter chills the air.
Blasts were reported Saturday across the country, from Lviv and Kyiv to Kharkiv in the east and Odessa in the south.
Homes were also hit hard in the village of Kopyliv, about 35 miles west of Kyiv. The windows and roofs of 18 privately owned houses were shattered or damaged by the blast, according to Oleksiy Kuleba, the regional governor.
Russia hit Ukraine with a second wave of missiles on Saturday, forcing civilians to dodge for cover. via REUTERS
The attacks came just hours after morning strikes pummeled critical infrastructure in Kyiv the eastern city of Kharkiv. AP
Missile debris caused fires and damaged apartment buildings and other homes outside the capital, officials said. via REUTERS
Medics of the Ukrainian Army evacuate a wounded soldier on a road not far from Soledad, Ukraine. AFP via Getty ImagesThe strikes occurred after the UK agreed to send next-generation tanks to Kyiv following a call between Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Politico reported.
“The Prime Minister outlined the UK’s ambition to intensify our support to Ukraine, including through the provision of Challenger 2 tanks and additional artillery systems,” the UK government said in a statement Saturday.
Following Saturday’s strikes, Ukraine Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba called on world leaders for more assistance.
Russia has been pounding Ukraine’s energy infrastructure with missiles and drones since October. AP“Each barrage of missiles further exhausts Russian stocks,” he tweeted. “However, they are still able to produce new ones. We can and must kill their missile and drone industry with a mass sanctions strike!
“I urge G7 and the [European Union] to implement relevant sanctions proposed by Ukraine without delay.”
Separately, Turkey on Saturday said it’s ready to push for ceasefires in Ukraine while warning that neither Moscow nor Kyiv had the military means to win the war, AFP reported.
The windows and roofs of 18 privately owned houses were shattered or damaged by the blast, according to Oleksiy Kuleba, Kyiv’s governor. via REUTERSIbrahim Kalin, a foreign policy adviser to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said it’s unlikely the warring sides would strike an “overarching peace deal” in the coming months. However, he added that the brutal cost of war might soon see them reconsider and accept truces in parts of some war zones.
“Turkey is willing to push for local ceasefires and small localized de-escalations,” Kalin told reporters.
With Post Wires
