An historic Nato summit is set to begin in Washington in the shadow of a “brutal” Russian attack on Ukrainian cities that killed and injured dozens.
The summit, which will mark the 75th anniversary of the Western alliance, is set to begin in Washington DC on Tuesday, where leaders will discuss the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine and support for Kyiv.
Last week, it was revealed Nato allies had agreed to fund military aid for Ukraine with 40 billion euros ($43 billion) over the next year.
It comes as Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said it was a “huge disappointment” to see Indian prime minister Narendra Modi embrace Vladimir Putin.
“It is a huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts to see the leader of the world’s largest democracy hug the world’s most bloody criminal in Moscow on such a day,” Mr Zelensky said.
It comes as US president Joe Biden slammed Russian “brutality” after dozens of missiles fired by Russia struck a number of cities across the country, killing at least 43 people and wounding more than 190.
Key points
- Historic Nato summit set to begin
- Modi under fire for bear-hugging ‘mass murderer’ Putin
- US president Biden slams Russian ‘brutality'
- UN assessment suggests Ukraine children's hospital hit by Russian missile
- Death toll from Russia’s missile attack on Ukraine reaches 41
Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko issues plea for air defences
04:41
Arpan Rai
A Russian missile attack directed against Ukraine’s top children’s hospital was one of the most “painful” days in the country’s recent history, the mayor of Kyiv, where the missile hit, has told The Independent.
Vitali Klitschko, a former boxing world heavyweight champion turned politician, cut an uncharacteristically tired figure as he recounted Monday’s events.
At least 29 people have been killed and more than 90 wounded in the multiple attacks. Seven districts across the city, on both sides of the dividing Dnipro river, were hit. The attack on Okhmatdyt children’s hospital killed two and injured roughly 50 others.
“It is very painful to spend time with parents who can’t find their children, to see them crying,” he said. “We are still working in the rubble to try to find those that are missing. I hope we find them alive. There’s a lot still of people missing. I call it genocide. Genocide.”
Tom Watling reports:
Watch: Rubble removed after Kyiv children’s hospital hit in Russian attack
04:24
Arpan Rai
Ukrainian emergency services continued to clear the rubble yesterday after a Russian missile attack on a children’s hospital in Kyiv.
Russia hit the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital with a missile in broad daylight on Monday 8 July and rained missiles down on other cities across Ukraine, killing at least 41 civilians in the deadliest wave of air strikes for months.
Parents holding babies walked in the street outside the hospital, dazed and sobbing after the rare daylight aerial attack.
Windows had been smashed and panels ripped off, and hundreds of Kyiv residents were helping to clear debris.
President Volodymyr Zelensky, who stopped in Poland before heading off to Washington for a Nato summit, put the death toll at 37, including three children.
Zelensky says can’t predict Trump’s actions if he is elected
04:10
Arpan Rai
Volodymyr Zelensky said he could not predict what Donald Trump would do if he regains the US presidency in November, but the whole world, including Russian leader Vladimir Putin, was awaiting the outcome of the ballot.
“I don’t know (him) very well,” Mr Zelensky said of Mr Trump, adding he had “good meetings” with him during the Republican candidate’s first presidency but said that was before Russia’s 2022 invasion.
“I can’t tell you what he will do, if he will be the president of the United States. I don’t know.”
The Ukrainian leader, speaking ahead of this week’s Nato summit, said he hoped Trump would not quit the 75-year-old Nato alliance and that America would keep supporting Ukraine in its defence against Russia’s more than two-year-old invasion.
“Everyone is waiting for November. Americans are waiting for November, in Europe, Middle East, in the Pacific, the whole world is looking towards November and, truly speaking, Putin awaits November too,” Mr Zelensky said.
“It is time to step out of the shadows, to make strong decisions... to act and not to wait for November or any other month.”
Mr Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for the US presidential election in November, has frequently criticised the size of US military support for Ukraine - some $60bn since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022 - and called Mr Zelensky “the greatest salesman ever.”
Kyiv says it has unequivocal evidence to prove children's hospital hit by Russian missile
04:00
Alexander Butler
The Ukrainian State Security Service (SBU) has presented new evidence it says proves that Kyiv’s main children’s hospital had been directly hit by a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile.
“The experts’ conclusions are unequivocal, it was a direct strike,” the SBU said on Telegram.
It shared images of a missile engine fragment it said was found at the site. The SBU added that analysis of trajectory and nature of damage caused prove the was a direct strike.
What is the Nato summit and why is it important for Ukraine?
03:55
Arpan Rai
Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his Nato counterparts are meeting in Washington this week to mark the 75th anniversary of the world’s biggest security organization just as Russia presses its advantage on the battlefield in Ukraine.
The three-day summit, which begins today, will focus on ways to reassure Ukraine of Nato’s enduring support and offer some hope to its war-weary citizens that their country might survive the biggest land conflict in Europe in decades.
Much of what Nato can do for Ukraine, and indeed for global security, is misunderstood. Often the alliance is thought of as the sum of all US relations with its European partners, from imposing sanctions and other costs on Russia to sending arms and ammunition.
But as an organization, its brief is limited to the defence by military means of its 32 member countries — the sacred Three Musketeers-like vow of all for one, one for all — and a commitment to help keep the peace in Europe and North America.
Japan must strengthen Nato ties to safeguard global peace, PM says
03:00
Alexander Butler
Russia’s deepening military cooperation with North Korea has underlined the need for Japan to forge closer ties with Nato, the country’s leader warned.
Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida also expressed concern over Beijing’s alleged role in aiding Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
“The securities of the Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific are inseparable, and Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and its deepened military cooperation with North Korea are strong reminders of that,” Mr Kishida said.
“Japan is determined to strengthen its cooperation with Nato and its partners,” he added.
Watch: Modi embraces Putin during Indian leader’s Russia visit
02:00
Alexander Butler
Why does it take Russia bombing a children’s hospital to make us care about Ukraine?
01:00
Alexander Butler
Modi under fire for bear-hugging ‘mass murderer’ Putin during Moscow summit
Tuesday 9 July 2024 23:30
Alexander Butler
Indian prime minister Narendra Modi has been criticised for greeting Vladimir Putin with his signature bear hug during their Moscow summit, even as he offered veiled criticism of Russia’s latest missile bombardment of civilians in Ukraine.
The Modi government’s carefully balanced policy on the Ukraine war – neither criticising nor condoning it, and increasing trade links with Russia while also courting stronger ties to the West – led some analysts to question just how warmly the two would interact during Mr Modi’s visit to Moscow.
Mr Modi arrived to a red-carpet welcome at Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow on Monday, and later the two leaders went for a hug after a brief handshake as the Indian prime minister arrrived at Mr Putin’s residence at Novo-Ogaryovo outside Moscow.
Russia allows Indian recruits to leave its military after Modi-Putin talks
Tuesday 9 July 2024 22:30
Alexander Butler
Mapped: Russian missile strikes kill dozens across Ukraine
Tuesday 9 July 2024 21:30
Alexander Butler
Elite North Korean unit heads to Russia for first military exchange after Putin-Kim summit
Tuesday 9 July 2024 20:30
Alexander Butler
What are hypersonic missiles and why is the West developing them amid Russia’s war in Ukraine?
Tuesday 9 July 2024 19:30
Alexander Butler
Why China is conducting military exercises in Belarus
Tuesday 9 July 2024 18:30
Alexander Butler
The Chinese military has begun joint drills in Belarus that are being held over the next 11 days in Brest, close to the border with Nato state Poland.
The joint military exercises by two of Russia’s most important allies come after Belarus became the 10th member of the China-led Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) during its 24th meeting of heads of council in Astana, Kazakhstan.
Belarus’s government said the drills “will allow … the laying of a foundation for further development of Belarusian-Chinese relations in the field of joint training of troops”.
Russian missiles destroy Kyiv children’s hospital in ‘genocidal’ daylight attack
Tuesday 9 July 2024 17:30
Alexander Butler
Watch: Rubble removed after Kyiv children’s hospital hit in Russian attack
Tuesday 9 July 2024 16:30
Alexander Butler
Zelensky to deliver address at Washington’s Reagan Institute
Tuesday 9 July 2024 15:30
Alexander Butler
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy will deliver an address at the Ronald Reagan Institute in Washington as he looks to drum up more support for the war against Russia’s invasion during this week’s Nato summit.
“President Reagan understood the Soviet Union and Russia. He knew that free countries must stand together with confidence whenever tyranny is on the move,” Oksana Markarova, Ukraine’s ambassador to the United States, said.
Nato is not expected to invite Ukraine to become a member at this year’s 9 July - 11 July gathering. Many Nato countries want to state that Ukraine’s path to membership is “irreversible” but alliance members are still wrangling over the summit declaration.
Modi under fire for bear-hugging ‘mass murderer’ Putin
Tuesday 9 July 2024 15:12
Alexander Butler
Japan must strengthen Nato ties to safeguard global peace, PM says
Tuesday 9 July 2024 15:00
Alexander Butler
Russia’s deepening military cooperation with North Korea has underlined the need for Japan to forge closer ties with Nato, the country’s leader warned.
Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida also expressed concern over Beijing’s alleged role in aiding Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
“The securities of the Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific are inseparable, and Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and its deepened military cooperation with North Korea are strong reminders of that,” Mr Kishida said.
“Japan is determined to strengthen its cooperation with Nato and its partners,” he added.
Modi under fire for bear-hugging ‘mass murderer’ Putin during Moscow summit
Tuesday 9 July 2024 14:30
Alexander Butler
Why does it take Russia bombing a children’s hospital to make us care about Ukraine? We must be better
Tuesday 9 July 2024 14:00
Alexander Butler
“Putin Bombs Cancer Kids”. The headline in the Daily Mirror is as powerful as it is succinct, and shows how, even in a vicious conflict such as Ukraine, where the rules of war are routinely ignored, some actions can still “cut through”.
Usually, Putin’s crimes against humanity, at least after the initial shock of the invasion, became mere background noise to those in the West.
The targeting of the largest paediatric unit in the country was indeed a heinous act, and a cynical one that was ordered by Vladimir Putin, the latest in his pitiless war of aggression in Ukraine. Sometimes you wonder whether the Kremlin is playing some dark satirical game when it tries to pass off a children’s hospital in Kyiv as a Ukrainian air base.
Read the full article by Sean O’Grady here:
Historic Nato summit set to begin
Tuesday 9 July 2024 13:58
Alexander Butler
An historic Nato summit is set to begin in Washington in the shadow of a “brutal” Russian attack on Ukrainian cities that killed and injured dozens.
The summit, which will mark the 75th anniversary of the Western alliance, is set to begin in Washington DC on Tuesday, where leaders will discuss the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine and support for Kyiv.
Last week, it was revealed Nato allies had agreed to fund military aid for Ukraine with 40 billion euros ($43 billion) over the next year.
Modi tells Putin the death of children is ‘very painful'
Tuesday 9 July 2024 13:30
Alexander Butler
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has told Vladimir Putin the death of children is “very painful” following Moscow’s attack on a children’s hospital in Ukraine.
Although not a direct reference to the attack, Mr Modi said the death of innocent children in war, conflict or a terrorist attack was “very painful”.
Mr Modi also told Mr Putin that a solution to the war in Ukraine “cannot be found on the battlefield. We have to find peace through talks”. Russia has denied attacking the children’s hospital in Ukraine’s capital.
‘They tried to kill children’: Kyiv doctor describes deadly Russia hospital attack
Tuesday 9 July 2024 13:00
Alexander Butler
Keir Starmer to face first international test as he meets Biden and other world leaders at Nato
Tuesday 9 July 2024 12:30
Tom Watling
US president Biden slams Russian ‘brutality'
Tuesday 9 July 2024 12:17
Alexander Butler
US president Joe Biden has slammed Russian “brutality” after dozens of missiles fired by Russia struck a number of cities across the country, killing at least 43 people and wounding more than 190.
“Russia’s missile strikes that today killed dozens of Ukrainian civilians and caused damage and casualties at Kyiv’s largest children’s hospital are a horrific reminder of Russia’s brutality,” Mr Biden said.
“It is critical that the world continues to stand with Ukraine at this important moment and that we not ignore Russian aggression.”
Former PrivatBank owner accused in fraud case left Ukraine illegally, investigators say
Tuesday 9 July 2024 12:00
Tom Watling
Ukraine‘s State Bureau of Investigation was looking into Gennadiy Bogolyubov, former co-owner of PrivatBank, who is suspected of using another person’s passport to leave Ukraine in June amid separate fraud allegations, it said on Tuesday.
PrivatBank, Ukraine‘s largest lender, accused former co-owners Bogolyubov and Ihor Kolomoisky in a lawsuit filed in London of orchestrating sham loans and supply agreements between 2013 and 2014 to defraud the bank on an “epic scale”. Ukraine nationalised the bank in 2016.
Bogolyubov and Kolomoisky both deny wrongdoing. They say there was no misappropriation from PrivatBank, and that the bank has no evidence of their involvement in alleged fraud.
Bogolyubov, accused by the bank of helping orchestrate $2 billion worth of fraud, left Ukraine on June 24 by train to Poland, illegally using the passport of another Ukrainian, the investigators said.
A border crossing official who helped him had been detained, they added.
The Privatbank case has been closely watched by politicians and investors as a test of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s willingness to pursue reforms and tackle the corruption which has blighted Ukraine for years, amid its ongoing war with Russia.
Kolomoisky has been in custody in Ukraine on suspicion of fraud since 2023.
Bogolyubov travelled onward to Austria from Poland, the Ukrainska Pravda online news outlet reported, citing sources. His press service told Pravda he left the country legally.
Russia to discharge Indians from its military after Modi speaks with Putin
Tuesday 9 July 2024 11:30
Tom Watling
Kyiv says it has unequivocal evidence to prove children's hospital hit by Russian missile
Tuesday 9 July 2024 11:19
Tom Watling
The Ukrainian State Security Service (SBU) has presented new evidence it says proves that Kyiv’s main children’s hospital had been directly hit by a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile.
“The experts’ conclusions are unequivocal, it was a direct strike,” the SBU said on Telegram.
It shared images of a missile engine fragment it said was found at the site. The SBU added that analysis of trajectory and nature of damage caused prove the was a direct strike.
Ukraine armed forces chief: We will never forgive the killing of peaceful people
Tuesday 9 July 2024 11:00
Tom Watling
Ukrainian armed forces chief Oleksandr Syrskyi has vowed to “never forgive the killing and terror of peaceful people” as the country holds a day of mourning following mass Russian strikes yesterday.
At least 41 people were killed yesterday in Kyiv and across Ukraine, while nearly 200 were wounded. Rescue operations are ongoing to find those still buried under the rubble.
“Yesterday’s massive missile attack on the cities of Ukraine shocked the whole world with its brutality and insidiousness,” General Syrskyi wrote on Telegram
“Russian terrorists cynically and purposefully struck civilian objects, in particular, the ‘Okhmatdyt’ children’s hospital.
“Today, on the day of mourning for the innocent victims of our capital and other cities of Ukraine, I bow my head together with the entire Ukrainian people as a sign of bright memory.
“We, Ukrainian soldiers, will never forgive the killing and terror of peaceful people. War crimes have no statute of limitations, and all those involved will inevitably be punished! Glory to Ukraine!”
Mapped: Russian missiles strikes kill dozens across Ukraine
Tuesday 9 July 2024 10:35
Tom Watling
Two more bodies recovered in Kyiv
Tuesday 9 July 2024 10:33
Tom Watling
The bodies of two women have been recovered from the debris of a destroyed building in Kyiv after yesterday’s attacks, Ukraine’s state emergency service has reported.
It takes the total death toll in the capital to 29 with 117 injuries, 10 of whom are children, according to the city’s mayor Vitaliy Klitschko.
Search operations in the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital have concluded, they added. Two were killed and 32 injured in that attack.
Rescuers recovered the bodies of 2 more women from under the ruins of a residential building in Kyiv, destroyed by the Russian attack on 8 July.
— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) July 9, 2024
Earlier, the rescuers found the body of a boy there while clearing the debris.
In total, 10 residents of this building died.
… pic.twitter.com/Ez9wUllICt
UN assessment suggests Ukraine children's hospital hit by Russian missile
Tuesday 9 July 2024 10:06
Tom Watling
A lethal strike on a children’s hospital in Ukraine‘s capital, Kyiv, was likely caused by a direct hit from a Russian missile, the head of the United Nations human rights monitoring mission has said, citing the organisation’s own analysis.
“Analysis of the video footage and an assessment made at the incident site indicates a high likelihood that the children’s hospital suffered a direct hit rather than receiving damage due to an intercepted weapon system,” said Danielle Bell, head of mission for the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine.
She added that her team, who visited the site on Monday, could not make a final determination but that the missile appeared to have been launched by the Russian Federation.
UK’s new defence minister forced to flee to bomb shelter during first trip to Ukraine
Tuesday 9 July 2024 10:00
Tom Watling
Elite North Korean unit heads to Russia for first military exchange after Putin-Kim summit
Tuesday 9 July 2024 09:45
Tom Watling
One dead and two injured in strike on Russian border city
Tuesday 9 July 2024 09:30
Tom Watling
At least one person has been killed and two injured in an alleged Ukrainian strike in Belgorod city, the local mayor has claimed.
Valentin Demidov claimed on Telegram that the city was “attacked by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. One person died and two were injured”.
He posted pictures seen below of the aftermath of the site.
Russia will follow Nato summit very closely, Kremlin says
Tuesday 9 July 2024 09:15
Tom Watling
The Kremlin has said it would closely follow this week’s Nato summit because the alliance had declared Moscow its enemy and sought to defeat Russia.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Russia considered Nato, which is holding a summit in Washington, to be fully involved in the conflict in Ukraine.
Ukraine's Zelenskyy discusses further NATO support with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk
Tuesday 9 July 2024 09:00
Tom Watling
Live: Rubble removed after Kyiv children’s hospital hit in Russian attack
Tuesday 9 July 2024 08:45
Tom Watling
Keir Starmer under pressure to increase defence spending ahead of first Nato summit as PM
Tuesday 9 July 2024 08:30
Tom Watling
Footage appears to show aftermath of Ukrainian drone strikes
Tuesday 9 July 2024 08:15
Tom Watling
Earlier, we reported that there had been alleged Ukrainian drone strikes in multiple locations across western Russia, including Volgograd, Rostov and Kursk.
Footage posted online has appeared to show the aftermath of these strikes.
Ukrainian drone strikes are reported on a substation in the Rostov region and an oil depot in the city of Kalach-on-Don, Volgograd region. pic.twitter.com/VphBm8gCQx
— NOELREPORTS (@NOELreports) July 9, 2024
Body of child found in Kyiv as search ongoing
Tuesday 9 July 2024 08:02
Tom Watling
The body of a young boy has been found beneath the rubble of a building in Kyiv destroyed by a Russian missile, the local emergency services have reported, as search operations are ongoing in the capital following mass strikes yesterday.
The boy was found in the Shevchenkivs’kyi district of the city in the northwest.
The death toll for the capital was later amended to 27 dead, including four children, while 117 people were injured. Seven people have been rescued at the time of writing.
“The elimination of consequences is still ongoing at 3 locations. 377 rescuers and 76 units of emergency services were involved at the scene,” the state emergency service wrote on Telegram.
Lithuanian FM: This is the moment we prove Putin wrong
Tuesday 9 July 2024 07:37
Tom Watling
Lithuanian foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis has called on Nato to “prove Putin wrong” and pledge scores of weapons to Ukraine after one of the deadliest days of Russian strikes on the country since the war began.
Ahead of the 75th Nato anniversary being held in Washington today, Mr Landsbergis wrote: “Putin doesn’t need to ‘test our response’ any more. He expects our response will be weak, and he wants the world to see how predictable we are.
“This is the moment to prove him wrong by giving Ukraine our best weapons and permission to hit military targets as deep as is necessary.”
Alliance membership for Ukraine has already been ruled out but Kyiv will be hoping for as many weapons pledges as possible.
Putin doesn't need to "test our response" any more. He expects our response will be weak, and he wants the world to see how predictable we are.
— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@GLandsbergis) July 8, 2024
This is the moment to prove him wrong by giving Ukraine our best weapons and permission to hit military targets as deep as is necessary.
Here are some of the latest photos from Ukraine
Tuesday 9 July 2024 07:21
Tom Watling
Good morning.
Below are some of the latest photos coming out of Ukraine.
Russian airports restrict flights after drone attack – report
Tuesday 9 July 2024 07:03
Arpan Rai
Russia’s Astrakhan and Volgograd airports restricted flights this morning after a suspected Ukrainian drone attack, Russian news agencies reported.
Russia’s air defence systems destroyed 38 drones that Ukraine launched overnight on several Russian regions, Russia’s defence ministry said earlier.
Additionally, one person reportedly died while two power substations and an oil depot caught fire, after Ukraine launched tens of drones in attacks on several regions.
Russian air defence systems claim to have destroyed 38 drones, including 21 over the southern region of Rostov and seven over Kursk, both of which border Ukraine, the Russian defence ministry said.
The total number of drones launched by Ukraine was not immediately clear.
Explosions were heard in the town of Kalach-on-the-Don in Russia’s southern region of Volgograd, said the Baza Telegram channel, which has sources in Russian law enforcement.
In a Telegram post, regional governor Andrei Bocharov said a power sub-station and an oil depot were set ablaze by falling debris from drones destroyed by Russian air defence systems.
Kremlin denies hospital attack
Tuesday 9 July 2024 07:00
Alexander Butler
The Kremlin said Kyiv’s claim Russian troops targeted the hospital was “absolutely untrue” and the destruction was caused by Ukrainian air defence missiles.
A spokesperson said: “The objectives of the strike have been achieved. Designated targets are hit. Statements by representatives of the Kyiv regime about an allegedly intentional missile strike by Russia on civilian targets are absolutely untrue.”
In response to the attack, Ukraine’s defence minister Rustem Umerov urged the country’s allies to provide more air defence technology to the country.
“Our defence capabilities are still insufficient. We need more air defence systems,” Mr Umerov said on Telegram.
UN says Russian missile attacks ‘abominable, particularly shocking’
Tuesday 9 July 2024 06:55
Arpan Rai
The United Nations has called an emergency meeting on the Russian missile attacks on Ukrainian cities yesterday which killed 41 people and condemned them as “shocking”.
“Among the victims were Ukraine’s sickest children,” said Volker Türk, the UN human rights commissioner. A UN team visited the hospital shortly after it was hit and saw the children receiving cancer treatments in hospital beds set up outdoors, he added. “This is abominable, and I implore those with influence to do everything in their power to ensure these attacks stop immediately,” Mr Türk said.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned yesterday’s missile strikes as “particularly shocking”, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.
The UN Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting on the attacks for Tuesday at the request of France and Ecuador. Russia, which holds the council’s rotating presidency this month, will preside at the meeting.
The International Criminal Court’s founding charter says it is a war crime to intentionally attack “hospitals and places where the sick and wounded are collected, provided they are not military objectives.”
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Security Service said it found wreckage from a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile at the site and opened proceedings on war crime charges. The Kh-101 is an air-launched missile that flies low to avoid detection by radar. Ukraine said it shot down 11 of 13 Kh-101 missiles launched yesterday.
Debris from missile attack fell into patients’s open chest mid-surgery – Ukrainian minister
Tuesday 9 July 2024 06:06
Arpan Rai
The Russian hypersonic missile attack on the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital yesterday caused debris to fall into heart patients’ open chests in the middle of surgery, reported The Associated Press. Cancer patients had their beds wheeled into parks and onto the streets.
At the time of the strike, three heart operations were being performed, leading to the contamination of the patients’ open chests with blast debris, health minister Viktor Liashko said.
The hospital lost water, light and oxygen, and the patients were transferred to other hospitals, he told Ukrainian television.
Rescuers searched for victims under the rubble of a partially collapsed, two-story wing of the facility, at the hospital that was hit by a missile. At the main 10-story building, windows and doors were blown out, and walls were blackened. Blood was spattered on the floor in one room.
The intensive care unit, operating theaters and oncology departments all were damaged, officials said.Rescuers formed a line, passing bricks and other debris to each other as they sifted through rubble. Smoke rose from the building, and volunteers and emergency crews worked in protective masks. Some mothers were seen carrying their children away on their backs, while others waited in the courtyard with their children as calls to doctors’ phones rang unanswered.
It was Russia’s heaviest bombardment of Kyiv in almost four months, hitting seven of the city’s 10 districts.
Zelensky condemns Modi’s Russian visit as Putin’s forces attack children
Tuesday 9 July 2024 05:58
Arpan Rai
Volodymyr Zelensky has condemned Indian prime minister Narendra Modi’s display of hugging Vladimir Putin on the same day Russian forces bombarded Ukrainian cities, killing dozens of people.
“In Ukraine today, 37 people were killed, three of whom were children, and 170 were injured, includi
