01/14/2023 22:43 (act. 01/14/2023 22:50)
Kyiv repeatedly targeted by Russian missile strikes ©APA/AFP
At least 12 people were killed in a Russian rocket attack on an inhabited skyscraper in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, according to preliminary information from authorities. 64 people were injured, including at least 12 children, authorities said on Saturday. A 15-year-old girl was among the dead, he said. An emergency services spokesman said there were still survivors in the rubble who were texting or simply asking for help.
Rescuers pulled people from the rubble of the partially collapsed house. 72 apartments were destroyed; a total of 100 to 200 people were reported in the house. He said these numbers are worrying. The search for the victims continued. More than 1,000 people would have to be cared for in warm accommodation, he said.
According to Ukrainian media reports, residents buried under the rubble also used their flashlights on cell phones in the dark to indicate where they were under the rubble to be rescued. Many also screamed, according to videos posted on social media.
The Presidential Administration in Kyiv released photos and videos of the crumbling building. The head of the presidential office in Kyiv Andriy Yermak was shocked: “Russians are terrorists who will be punished for everything. Everyone – without exception.” He said the anti-aircraft and air force were doing their job. “Let’s fight,” he emphasized him. The enemy does not change tactics and continues to attack civilian infrastructure. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also condemned “Russian terror”. About the rescue work, he said: “We are fighting for every human being, for every life”. Those responsible for this bloody act would be found and punished. At the same time, Zelenskyy is again demanding more weapons from the West. To prevent deadly attacks on civilian targets, weapons that are in partner countries’ depots are needed, says Zelenskyy in his video speech every night.
Faced with the critical situation of the electricity supply as a result of the missile attack in Dnipro, the Ukrainian ambassador to Austria, Vasyl Chymynets, asked for help. “To ensure the power supply of important infrastructure objects in Dnipro and Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, we urgently request generators,” the diplomat asked on Twitter late on Saturday.
The rocket hit in Dnipro was the most important of several attacks on Saturday. There were aerial alerts across the country at times. It was the first major Russian attack of its kind since the turn of the year. The Ukrainian military said 25 of 38 Russian missiles had been shot down on Saturday.
Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said rocket debris landed in the capital in the morning. A fire in an unoccupied building was extinguished. In the afternoon, the media reported a cloud of smoke at the main train station in the metropolis.
Northeast Ukraine was also under attack again, as in Kyiv, in particular critical infrastructure. The region’s governor, Oleg Synehubov, said two rockets had landed in Kharkiv. According to the Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform, Russian troops also attacked Zaporizhia in the early hours of Saturday. Olexandr Starukh, military governor of Zaporizhia, reported the destruction in the area on Telegram. There were no injuries.
The Ukrainian Air Force had previously warned of possible further attacks. Accordingly, several long-range Russian bombers of the Tupolev Tu-95 type were in the air during the day. In addition, Russian warships have occupied positions in the Black Sea, from where rockets are also fired repeatedly.
According to the Interior Ministry, rocket debris was discovered in the north of the Republic of Moldova. After Russia’s heavy bombing of Ukraine, border police found debris from a rocket that came from Russian airstrikes in Ukraine, the ministry said on Facebook.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian authorities again contradict Russia’s report that the small town of Soledar, in eastern Ukraine, had been captured by Russian troops. “Soledar is controlled by the Ukrainian authorities, our military controls it,” regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said on state television on Saturday. There are still fights “inside and outside the city”. Russia’s Ministry of Defense said on Friday that the “liberation” of Soledar by Russian troops was “complete”.