Russian forces began June with a new intense airstrike on kyiv, killing at least three people, including a child, and injuring several, authorities said.
Following 17 drone and missile strikes over the month of May against the Ukrainian capital, Russian forces fired a round of missiles from the ground on Thursday.
One of the dead was a child and 10 were injured, according to the kyiv City Administration. It was the highest death toll from a single attack on kyiv in the past month. The attack also caused damage to apartment buildings, a clinic, a water main and several vehicles. The municipal government had reported two dead minors before correcting the figure to one.
The air force intercepted all 10 projectiles, according to the Ukrainian General Staff, which identified them as short-range Iskander ballistic missiles.
Russia has repeatedly attacked Kiev with waves of drones and missiles since the start of the invasion, but attacks on the capital have increased significantly in the past month as Ukraine prepares a counteroffensive. Although most of the weapons are shot down, anguish and exhaustion weigh on the population after weeks of sleepless nights under the sound of the explosions.
Ukrainian anti-aircraft systems have become more effective at intercepting Russian drones and missiles, but in some cases the remains of those weapons cause fires and injuries.
In the Desnianskyi district, debris fell on a children's hospital and a nearby multi-storey building. Two schools and a police station were damaged.
In another district, on Dniprovskyi, a residential building was damaged by burning debris and there was thick smoke. The impact broke the windows, several vehicles caught fire and some debris fell on the street and patios in the area.
In the Darnytskyi neighborhood, a water main and a residential building were damaged, and windows were smashed out by the blast wave.
After a woman was killed watching an airstrike from her balcony earlier this week, authorities in the capital urged residents to attend to sirens and stay in shelters and other safe places. "You have to be vigilant, since ballistic missiles fly at incredible speeds. From the time the alarm sounds until the rocket arrives, you only have a few seconds!", they warned in a message to the population.
Ukraine claimed last month that it had shot down some Russian Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, which Russian President Vladimir Putin has hailed as a crucial competitive advantage.
On Wednesday, Russian forces carried out three airstrikes in the southern Kherson region, in addition to firing missiles and artillery at other parts of the region.
At least eight people were injured in a city in Russia's Belgorod region, bordering Ukraine, subjected to continuous artillery fire for several hours, local governor Viacheslav Gladkov said Thursday.
"Shebekino is under uninterrupted fire" from rocket launchers, Gladkov said on the Telegram network, reports Afp.
Ukrainian forces shelled "the center and the outskirts" of the city, it added.
"Eight people were injured. There were no deaths," he said.
The first balance reported by the governor reported five injured, including a policeman.
"Of course, the lives of civilians and the population are threatened. Above all, in Shebekino and the surrounding villages," Gladkov stressed, adding that evacuations will be organized as soon as "the situation has calmed down."
"The enemy has not penetrated the territory of the Belgorod region," but "massive artillery attacks" continue, Gladkov said.
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