Mayor says some residential buildings were destroyed and there were no military targets in the area
Ukraine's regional governor said Tuesday that at least 16 people were injured, including two in critical condition, after the latest Russian S-300 missile strikes hit a non-military area of Kharkiv, days after the attack that killed three in the same region.
The missiles hit residential buildings, according to the city's governor, Oleg Synegubov.
The Ukrainian city of Kharkiv is 30 kilometers (19 miles) from the border with Russia and has been the target of frequent attacks since Russia launched its special military operation in February 2022.
After the attacks, the mayor said that some residential buildings were destroyed and that there were no military targets in the area.
Earlier Tuesday, authorities urged about 3,000 residents in more than two dozen villages near the front lines in the Kharkiv region to evacuate, citing escalating Russian attacks in the area.
Russian forces captured swaths of the Kharkiv region shortly after the special military operation in Ukraine and have maintained their efforts to seize the region despite losing ground there.
The latest attack took place almost two weeks after Russian strikes hit Zmiiv, Kharkiv region, on January 8, killing at least three people.
Previously, on December 30 last year, at least 30 people were killed and more than 160 injured after Russia's largest missile barrage hit Kiev, along with several other Ukrainian cities.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a statement that Russia “has used almost all types of weapons in its arsenal,” attacking residences and a maternity hospital.
Russian air defenses, which were overwhelmed, have improved significantly, according to the Ukrainian Air Force spokesperson.
He said Russia uses hypersonic, cruise and ballistic missiles, including the X-22 type, which are difficult to intercept, adding: “We have never seen so many targets hit simultaneously.”
The air force said 114 of 158 missiles and drones had been shot down. This level of destruction could only be caused by a direct hit from a missile.
For months, the damage and deaths that Ukrainians continually anticipated were caused primarily by falling debris. Now a greater threat has reappeared.
Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ignat said this was a “record number” of missiles and “the most massive missile attack” of the war, excluding the early days of constant bombing.
