A Russian missile strike on an apartment block in northern Ukraine has killed 19 people, including five children, while families slept.
Three of the children were one‑year‑olds. According to local officials, a boy of eight and the boy who died with his mother and grandmother were also among the dead.
President Volodymyr Zelensky called the strike “one of Russia’s most vile” and suggested the attack was a “birthday gift” to Vladimir Putin on his 74th‑birthday. Moscow denied responsibility and said the missile hit military industry targets in Kyiv.
National casualty counts rose to 25 on that Wednesday, with deaths reported in Kyiv, Kremenchuk and Oleksandriya, and damage to more than 430 homes and private residences across the country.
Rescue teams in Pryluky spent hours inside the ruins of the five‑storey block, eventually finding a fifth child’s body and treating more than 50 wounded residents, including damage to a youth centre.
Regional commander Vyacheslav Chaus said five cruise missiles were fired, one of which struck the apartment building. Named victims include one‑year‑olds Oleksandr, Kyrylo, and Serhii, as well as eight‑year‑old Maxsym. A boy named Sasha died together with his mother Kateryna and grandmother Viktoriia; only Sasha’s older sister Olha survived.
Ukraine’s air force reported shooting down five ballistic and 39 cruise missiles, as well as over 100 drones, including 46 of Russia’s jet‑powered drones that have caused extensive damage recently. The defence ministry said 26 missiles penetrated Ukrainian defences, prompting a renewed appeal for air‑defence support from allies.
While Kiev citizens sought shelter in underground stations, national police posted photographs of an unexploded Russian Iskander missile fragment in a residential district, verified by BBC Verify. Separate footage shows damage to cars, rubble and a fallen tree in Kremenchuk inside apartment blocks.
Russia’s retaliatory attacks continue in the Black Sea and eastern Ukraine, with Ukrainian forces claiming hits on Russian oil facilities, a training ground and a target in the Black Sea. Recent drone and missile incidents have also transiently involved ships in the Bosphorus and Black Sea, leading to search operations in Bulgarian waters and claims of casualties among crews.
