Russia has attacked an apartment complex in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, killing at least three people and wounding 31 others, local officials say.
A wave of attacks on high-rise buildings and other residential areas were carried out using guided glide bombs on Tuesday.
“The target of Russian bombs is a residential building, a bakery, a stadium… that is, the normal life of ordinary people,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The attack comes as fighting intensifies in the east of the country as Russian troops encircle and close in on the largely destroyed town of Vuhledar.
Immediately after the Kharkiv airstrike on Tuesday, Zelensky issued a statement sharing images of the destroyed apartment tower – showing a large gaping hole in the middle of the building.
He called on allies to “end terrorism”. He is in New York to address the annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly.came on Monday to reiterate Ukraine’s need for timely US military support.
“Today, the UN General Assembly is discussing a lot about joint efforts for security and the future. But we just need to end terrorism. For security. For the future,” Zelensky said.
Meanwhile in Kharkiv, officials said Russia carried out air strikes on at least four districts of the city and that the building that was attacked had been hit before when the war began.
“It was almost repaired, all the windows were installed, insulated and ready for the heating season. The enemy hit it a second time with a KAB [glide bomb]”, Kharkov Mayor Ihor Terekov said on Telegram.
Russia increasingly uses glide bombs in recent months — Soviet-era bombs equipped with wings and satellite-navigation aids. They are cheap, devastating and are believed to be key to Russia’s efforts to seize more land in Ukraine.
They were used in May in attacks in Kharkiv, while military analysts also noted that they appeared to have been first used in the city of Zaporizhzhia on Sunday evening.
Ukrainian officials said Russia carried out seven air strikes using KAB glide bombs, injuring at least 21 civilians in attacks on 13 residential buildings and two educational facilities.
Zaporizhzhia officials also said Russia carried out another attack on the southeastern city on Monday night, killing one person and wounding at least four others, including two children.
Russian forces have made significant advances in eastern Ukraine and are closing in on Vuhledar, a coal mining town south of the Donbas frontline. The Russians have been trying to capture the town since the start of their full-scale invasion.
On Monday, Russian military bloggers reported that Moscow’s troops had entered the outskirts of the town in the Donetsk region. The Ukrainian military has only mentioned a few attempts to seize its positions in Vuhledar.
Meanwhile, according to the US-based Institute for the Study of War, Russian forces have also recently advanced near Hlyboke, Kupyansk and Pokrovsk.
The war monitoring group said Ukrainian forces recently entered the Kursk region.
