Deadly strikes rock Kharkiv as Russia claims fresh advances

deadly strikes rock kharkiv as russia claims fresh advances

Deadly strikes rock Kharkiv as Russia claims fresh advances

Russian strikes on Ukraine's second-largest city Kharkiv killed at least seven people with dozens more wounded, authorities said Thursday, as Moscow claimed fresh advances on the front line.

deadly strikes rock kharkiv as russia claims fresh advances

A devastated building in Kharkiv after the latest strikes

The northeast border region surrounding Kharkiv has become the latest flashpoint of the war after Russian forces launched a surprise ground offensive this month, forcing the evacuation of thousands of residents.

deadly strikes rock kharkiv as russia claims fresh advances

Law enforcement officers carry the body of a person killed during a Russian aerial attack on Kharkiv

The barrage of more than a dozen strikes came as Moscow said it captured Andriivka in the industrial Donetsk region, one of the few villages Ukraine wrested back in its lacklustre counteroffensive last summer.

Kyiv's forces are suffering manpower and ammunition shortages and struggling to hold off Russian attacks.

Emergency workers were clearing debris, extinguishing flames and retrieving victims from the rubble in the aftermath of the latest attack on Kharkiv, images distributed by Ukrainian officials showed.

President Volodymyr Zelensky described the barrage as "brutal" and said Russia was "taking advantage" of Ukraine's lack of air defence systems to launch deadly attacks on towns and cities at his country's border.

deadly strikes rock kharkiv as russia claims fresh advances

Map of areas controlled by Ukrainian and Russian forces in Ukraine, as of May 22, 1900 GMT

The regional governor said seven people had been killed and that another 20 were wounded. A second strike later in the nearby town of Dergachi left another 13 wounded, he added.

Ukraine's national railway operator said civilian railway infrastructure had been hit in Kharkiv and the surrounding region in the aerial assault, with six of its employees wounded.

Regional authorities said a major Ukrainian printing press had also been damaged, and AFP journalists at the scene saw firefighters dousing piles of charred books.

deadly strikes rock kharkiv as russia claims fresh advances

Friends and relatives of captured Ukrainian marines take part in a rally to demand their return in Kyiv

- Ukraine 'lacks' air defences -

Kharkiv, which is the second-largest city in Ukraine and lies just dozens of kilometres from the border with Russia, has been under persistent shelling since Moscow's forces invaded in February 2022.

"Russian terrorists are taking advantage of the fact that Ukraine still lacks sufficient air defence protection," Zelensky said on social media.

Ukrainian officials have been urging allies to send more air defences and this week suggested that Kyiv's neighbours shoot down Russian missiles using systems deployed in their own countries.

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba again called on Ukraine's Western partners to send seven Patriot systems, saying "they are needed now, not tomorrow".

"No naming and shaming, but I once again urge countries that have Patriots to speed up decisions and provide these systems to Ukraine," Kuleba added in a social media post.

Separately, the head of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region, which the Kremlin claims is part of Russian territory, said a 74-year-old man was killed by Russian shelling on the village of Mala Tokmachka.

Russian forces have in recent weeks made their biggest territorial gains in a year in the war-battered east as Ukraine waits for desperately needed US and European weapon supplies.

The defence ministry in Moscow said on Thursday it had recaptured the village of Andriivka in the eastern Donetsk region.

The advances in Kharkiv have forced nearly 11,000 people to flee their homes since Moscow launched its ground assault on May 10, regional officials meanwhile said.

Russian authorities meanwhile said that Ukrainian attacks on the border region of Belgorod and in the occupied Ukrainian region of Donetsk left two dead.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said his army launched the offensive in Kharkiv to create a buffer zone that would protect Russian border villages from Ukrainian attacks.

bur-jbr/fg

OTHER NEWS

3 hrs ago

ABS-CBN hits 48 million subscribers on YouTube, 40 million followers on Facebook!

3 hrs ago

Sofia Andres' Summer OOTDs in Madrid Are a Masterclass in Dressing Elegantly for Travel

3 hrs ago

Street calls of the week: Upgrade for Shopify; downgrades for AMD, Paramount

3 hrs ago

The Eagles Announce Fall Residency Set at Las Vegas' Sphere

3 hrs ago

Staff shortage closes urgent treatment centre

3 hrs ago

Coron legislator files persona non grata against vloggers Rosmar Tan, Rendon Labador following disputes in the municipality

3 hrs ago

Gervonta Davis knocks out Frank Martin to keep WBA title

3 hrs ago

NBA Finals: Irving ends skid vs Celtics, now Mavs try to win in Boston

3 hrs ago

LTO: ‘No Plate, No Travel’ policy for QC tricycles effective July 1

3 hrs ago

Singapore taps Cebu Pacific for travel promo

3 hrs ago

Magsayo outboxes Mexican foe to win WBA regional title in Las Vegas

4 hrs ago

NBA Finals: Celtics take season’s worth of lessons into Game 5

4 hrs ago

ACT solon wants to probe alleged US Pentagon secret anti-vax campaign

4 hrs ago

Aberg paces US Open; McIlroy drops to fifth

4 hrs ago

Simone Ashley Says She and Jonathan Bailey Will Do 'All We Can' to Return for “Bridgerton ”Season 4

4 hrs ago

Infinity art unveiled in county of symbol's creator

4 hrs ago

Scargill joins rally marking 40 years since Orgreave

4 hrs ago

Activists, exiled opposition slam Sweden's 'shameful' freeing of Iranian ex-official

4 hrs ago

Bay City Cafe at Citadines: A love letter to Filipino cuisine, cities

4 hrs ago

Muslims gather in Manila, Taguig for Eid'l Adha prayers

4 hrs ago

BINI graces local magazine's cover

4 hrs ago

Jurassic fossil found in storeroom to go on display

4 hrs ago

Joel Embiid says he’s feeling well, on track for Paris Olympics

4 hrs ago

PAF to continue WPS patrols amid China's 'no trespass' rule

5 hrs ago

Osaka advances in Wimbledon warm-up

5 hrs ago

UK 'guinea pig' for election security before landmark votes

5 hrs ago

Weavers win for home crowd in MPBL's first game in Abra

5 hrs ago

PH looks laid-back on green goals compared with neighbors

5 hrs ago

Cebu urban poor group opposes Marcos’ high-rise housing project

5 hrs ago

Residential fire in Las Piñas City reaches 2nd alarm

5 hrs ago

DOH exec wants anti-vax campaign of US Pentagon uncovered

5 hrs ago

This West Hollywood Italian Deli Assembles Paninis With the Precision of a Surgeon

5 hrs ago

In the trenches: how to buy a runway-ready secondhand coat

6 hrs ago

House to prioritize tackling of proposed P6.2 trillion budget for 2025

6 hrs ago

Speaker: House, Senate nearing agreement on RTL amendments

6 hrs ago

Meralco rates down in June

6 hrs ago

Billie Eilish Becomes the 3rd and Youngest Artist to Reach 100M Monthly Spotify Listeners

6 hrs ago

Gerrit Cole could be ready to rejoin New York rotation, though Yankees not ready to commit

7 hrs ago

PH goes to UN body to seek extension of continental shelf

7 hrs ago

Three keys to Texas Longhorns winning the College Football Playoff