A Russian drone struck a multi-story apartment in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy early on Thursday and killed nine people, leaving 13 others wounded including a child, Ukainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy reported.
Zelenskiy confirmed the attack in his night video address. He said that rescue operations are still underway at the site where a Russian Shahed drone attacked the building. He described it as an assault on whole families, calling the attack a form of Russian action. He highlighted the need for global accountability when he stated, “Terror cannot be left unpunished.”
The Ukrainian military reported Russian launching 81 drones overnight to strike at different locations around Ukraine. Although the air force was successful in intercepting 37 of these drones, the other 39 drones were unable to hit their targets. The fate of the remaining five was not stated.
Sumy Governor Volodymyr Artyukh published a video on Telegram, in which emergency services could be seen at work among the ruins of the building, saving people from under the rubble. Five apartments have been destroyed in the attack and more than 20 vehicles were damaged. Teams of rescuers were searching among the debris, trying to save people.
In addition to the strike in Sumy, Russian drones struck the southern region of Odesa, hitting a grain warehouse, a hospital, and private homes. Yet no casualties have been reported due to this attack.
Russia denied targeting civilians but thousands have lost their lives or were injured since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, while drone strikes are now a familiar tactic.