At least 51 people were killed and 235 wounded when Russia struck a military institute in Ukraine’s central town of Poltava with two ballistic missiles on Tuesday, the war’s deadliest single attack this year.
Photographs posted on social media showed several bodies of young men on the ground covered in dust and debris, with the badly damaged side of a large building behind them.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a video that Russian forces struck with two ballistic missiles, damaging a building of the Military Institute of Communications.
He added that he had ordered a full and prompt investigation into the circumstances of the attack.
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“The Russian scum will definitely be held accountable for this strike,” Mr Zelenskiy said on the Telegram messaging app.
He repeated his calls for more western air defences and urged allies to allow their long-range weapons to be used for strikes deeper into Russian territory in order to protect Ukraine.
“We keep telling everyone in the world who has the power to stop this terror: air defence systems and missiles are needed in Ukraine, not in a warehouse somewhere.
“Long-range strikes that can protect us from Russian terror are needed now, not some time later. Unfortunately, every day of delay means loss of life.”
Officials did not immediately disclose the identity of the victims, but Ukrainian military bloggers suggested some might be cadets or mobilised men undergoing training. Serhiy Beskrestnov, a blogger specialising in communications and electronic warfare, posted a tribute to “my signals operator comrades”.
Defence Ministry spokesman Dmytro Lazutkin told national TV that classes at the institute were underway at the time of the attack. He said the alarm sounded at 9.08am local time prompting people to rush the shelter. “A few minutes after the air alert, explosions sounded,” he said
The use of ballistic missiles - which hit targets hundreds of kilometres away within a few minutes of their launch - meant the victims had little time to find cover after the air raid siren sounded, the foreign ministry said.
“One of the institute’s buildings was partially destroyed, and many people were trapped under the rubble,” the defence ministry said on Telegram. “Thanks to the coordinated work of rescuers and medics, 25 people were rescued, 11 of whom were taken from the rubble. The rescuers are currently continuing their work.”
“Every 15-20 minutes there are ‘minutes of silence’ to listen out for people who are under the rubble,” Oleksandr Khorunzhyi, press officer of the emergency services, said in televised comments.
Local authorities in Poltava, some 300 km southeast of Kyiv and 120km to the nearest Russian border, announced three days of mourning.
“This is a stunning tragedy for all of Ukraine. The enemy hit an educational institution and a hospital,” Ukraine’s first lady,Olena Zelenska wrote on X.
Russia, which has yet to comment on the attack, has intensified its missile and drone attacks on Ukraine, two-and-a-half years into the war.
Last week, Ukraine was pummelled with the heaviest bombardment to date, and on Monday ballistic and cruise missiles targeted Kyiv causing loud explosions.
Ukraine also targeted Russia with more than 158 drones at the weekend, damaging an oil refinery near Moscow and a power station.
Fighting has intensified over the past month, with Russian forces advancing in eastern Ukraine, while Kyiv’s troops have mounted their first large-scale cross-border assault into Russia. Moscow has vowed to retaliate for the incursion into the Kursk region. – Reuters.