KYIV: Russian forces struck a multi-storey apartment building in Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, on Saturday evening, injuring at least 12 people and prompting an evacuation of some of its residents, Mayor Ihor Terekhov said.
Kharkiv, 30 km (18 miles) from the Russian border, has been a frequent target of Moscow’s attacks since the Kremlin’s troops launched their February 2022 invasion of its smaller neighbour.
Terekhov, writing on the Telegram messaging app, said the Russians had deployed a guided bomb, and that rescue operations were under way at the site. He said many windows had been shattered and 60 residents had been evacuated from the building, .
Public broadcaster Suspilne said the bomb landed in a tree outside one of the building’s entrances and a number of cars had exploded or were set ablaze.
Regional Governor Oleh Syniehubov said a child was among those injured. He said there had been two attacks on the city and a
strike near the city of Izium, southeast of Kharkiv, which had set two private homes on fire.
On Friday, Russian forces launched three strikes on Kharkiv, injuring 15 people.
Further south, a Russian drone attack killed two people on Saturday in the town of Nikopol, the regional governor said.
In Kurakhove, one of the focal points of Russia’s slow advance through Donetsk region, one person was killed in a Russian artillery strike, regional prosecutors said.
And local authorities in Sumy region said Russian aircraft struck energy infrastructure in the town of Shostka.
Sumy has been another frequent target of Russian attacks and lies opposite Russia’s southern Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces launched an incursion last month.
