At least 25 people lost their lives, including three children, after a massive Russian drone and missile assault struck the western Ukrainian city of Ternopil. Ukrainian emergency services reported that the attack destroyed two residential apartment blocks and left dozens trapped or injured amid burning debris. Authorities said that at least 73 people were wounded in the strike, among them 15 children. This incident marks one of the most lethal attacks by Russia in western Ukraine since the outbreak of the full scale invasion in February 2022. Rescue teams continued searching through the broken structure, fearing that more residents remained buried under the collapsed sections of the buildings. Additional Russian attacks hit the western regions of Lviv and Ivano Frankivsk. In the north, a wave of drones targeted three districts of Kharkiv, injuring more than 30 people. Images shared on social media depicted blazing vehicles, shattered homes, and thick smoke rising over multiple neighborhoods.
Western Ukraine Attack by Russia Kills 25 People, Several Children Confirmed
According to Ukraine’s energy ministry, power outages spread across several regions following the series of Russian strikes. President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Russia launched more than 470 drones and 47 missiles overnight, causing extensive destruction. He stressed that the situation in Ternopil remained highly dangerous, with emergency crews racing against time to find survivors. A video released by Zelensky revealed the extent of the devastation in Ternopil. One of the apartment blocks had collapsed from the third floor to the ninth. Ukraine’s interior minister Ihor Klymenko confirmed that large portions of the building were completely destroyed. Smoke poured from shattered windows while smaller fires ignited outside the damaged structure. Behind the Church of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, a massive cloud of smoke rose into the sky as sirens sounded across the city. Elsewhere in western Ukraine, energy facilities, transportation hubs, and civilian infrastructure suffered significant damage. In the Ivano Frankivsk region, officials reported that two of the three injured individuals were children. The head of Lviv region said that an important energy site had also been struck.
The Russian barrage took place one day after Ukraine’s military acknowledged firing US supplied long range Atacms missiles at Russian territory for the first time. Russia’s defense ministry claimed that Ukraine launched four missiles toward the southern city of Voronezh but said its air defenses intercepted all of them. President Zelensky is now traveling to Ankara to meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in an effort to revive a US backed initiative aimed at ending the war. Reports suggest that US envoy Steve Witkoff has been engaged in discussions with Russian representative Kirill Dmitriev, though the Kremlin stated that no Russian officials would join the Ankara talks. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed speculation about secret negotiations, saying there was no new information to provide. Meanwhile, Romania reported that a Russian drone briefly entered its airspace before crossing into Ukraine and Moldova. Polish authorities also scrambled jets and temporarily shut two southeastern airports as the Russian attacks intensified. As the four year mark of Russia’s full scale invasion approaches, Moscow and Kyiv remain firmly divided over any potential path to peace.
source:BBC
