Volodymyr Zelensky condemned large-scale Russian attacks on Ukraine that killed at least 15 people overnight across central and eastern regions including Kyiv, Dnipro, Kremenchuk, and Chernihiv. The strikes involved 70 missiles, damaging residential buildings and energy infrastructure; a five-storey apartment in Pryluky was destroyed particularly severely. Zelensky reported that Ukraine had responded with attacks on targets in Russia’s Perm, Samara, Astrakhan regions and the Black Sea area.
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- Published
At least 15 people have died in overnight strikes across central and eastern Ukraine, in what Volodymyr Zelensky has described as one of Russia's "most vile" attacks.
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Zelensky → publish → attacks
Ukraine's president said a residential building in Pryluky in the Chernihiv region was destroyed as a "birthday 'gift' to Putin", who turns 74 on Wednesday.
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who → say → Wednesday
Strikes also hit Kyiv, Dnipro, Kremenchuk, Zaporizhzhia and Oleksandriya.
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Strikes → hit → Kyiv
Zelensky said Ukraine had struck targets in attacks on Russia's Perm, Samara and Astrakhan regions in the past 24 hours, adding there was "also a response in the Black Sea", without providing further details.
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Ukraine → say → details
Moscow is yet to comment on the latest strikes.
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Moscow → comment → strikes
"The Russians wanted to strike painfully and demonstratively," Zelensky said, adding that 70 missiles were fired in total.
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missiles → want → total
In the social media post on Wednesday morning, Zelensky said five people had been killed and 26, including five children, injured in a strike on a five-storey apartment building in Pryluky.
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people → say → Pryluky
He added that people could still be trapped in the rubble.
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people → add → rubble
Chernihiv Oblast police later reported that the death toll had risen to nine after the bodies of three children were recovered, with emergency workers continuing a search operation.
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workers → report → operation
Two people were also killed and eight injured after Russian missile strikes damaged five apartment buildings in Dnipro and four high-rise buildings in Kremenchuk
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strikes → kill → Kremenchuk
, said Zelensky.
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Zelensky → say → ?
Two people were also killed in the capital, Kyiv, and two others in Oleksandriya, he added.
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he → kill → Oleksandriya
Ukraine's national police posted pictures online showing what it says is an unexploded Russian Iskander missile in the middle of a Kyiv district.
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it → post → district
BBC Verify has confirmed the images are genuine and the apparent missile fragments came down in an area of open land surrounded by high-rise apartment buildings.
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fragments → confirm → buildings
A video posted by the police shows people digging through collapsed remains of a residential building in Pryluky.
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people → post → Pryluky
Another verified video shows damage to cars and what appears to be rubble and a fallen tree in an area surrounded by apartment blocks in Kremenchuk.
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what → verify → Kremenchuk
Zelensky renewed a call for allies to provide air defence support packages to Ukraine, saying its military only managed to shoot down "some" of the missiles launched by Russia overnight.
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military → renew → Russia
According to Zelensky, one of the "key targets" of the attack was the country's energy infrastructure, which Moscow earlier said it would intensify strikes on following Ukraine's strikes on Moscow's energy facilities.
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it → accord → facilities
In a separate post on Wednesday, Zelensky said Ukraine had struck four targets in retaliatory attacks in the past 24 hours, including two oil facilities and a training ground in the Perm, Samara and Astrakhan regions.
"There is also a response in the Black Sea," the Ukrainian president wrote.
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president → say → Sea
On Tuesday evening, footage emerged showing a huge plume of smoke engulfing an oil tanker off the coast of Sochi, along the Black Sea in southern Russia.
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plume → show → Russia
The Russian transport ministry later said unmanned boats had attacked the Liberian-flagged Aframax Rio oil tanker.
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boats → say → tanker
Authorities claim the crew was rescued.
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crew → claim → ?
Separately, Bulgaria has halted a search for the missing crew of a ship that sank after being hit by a drone on Tuesday, Vice-Admiral Rumen Nikolov from the Maritime Administration Executive Agency said, as reported by Bulgarian television network Nora TV.
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Nikolov → halt → TV
Tracking data shows the ship was anchored at the southern end of the Bosphorus strait until Monday when it entered the Black Sea heading north.
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it → show → Sea
Its last reported position on ship-tracking site MarineTraffic was at 23:43 GMT on Monday in what is known as the Bulgarian exclusive economic zone of the Black Sea.
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what → report → Sea
Bulgarian specialist news outlet Maritime.bg reported the Alfa Watan was attacked by a drone and sank 70nm (130km) east of Byala.
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Watan → report → Byala
As well as the civilian cargo ship, a second vessel - carrying grain - was also hit within Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone, its Prime Minister Rumen Radev said on Tuesday.
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Radev → carry → Tuesday
The 18 crew members on the second vessel were rescued.
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members → rescue → vessel
Bulgaria has not said who it believes was behind the attacks.
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it → say → attacks
It comes as Russia intensifies strikes in the Black Sea, particularly the eastern side, as part of its war against Ukraine.
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Russia → come → Ukraine
In an evening address on Tuesday, Zelensky claimed Russia was responsible for the attacks.
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Russia → claim → attacks
Moscow has not commented on the latest incident.
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Moscow → comment → incident
The Aporia
