A grandmother collapsed in grief today after discovering her daughter and granddaughter had been killed in a Russian missile attack on kyiv that left three dead.
Her screams and wails of agony broke the deathly silence in the Ukrainian capital when she saw the charred body of her daughter and her 11-year-old granddaughter on the ground in front of her.
The cruise and ballistic missile barrage struck at 3 a.m. and destroyed houses, a kindergarten and a medical clinic in the Ukrainian capital, leaving a scene of utter devastation.
The mother, her 11-year-old daughter and another woman were killed in the airstrikes, which have been relentlessly hitting the capital for weeks. At least 12 others were injured, including a child.
Russia has repeatedly attacked Kiev with waves of drone and missile strikes since the start of the invasion, but attacks on the capital have intensified significantly over the past month as Ukraine prepares for a counteroffensive.
At first, she couldn’t understand what she was seeing, but then she realized that the charred bodies in front of her were those of her daughter and granddaughter.
The medics, holding the woman’s hands, slowly led her away from the horrific scene: her face was etched with grief and shock as her loved ones now lay dead on the ground.
Rescuers and medics work at a local clinic, where fragments of a downed missile fell in kyiv.
After the strike this morning, a heartbroken grandmother discovered the bodies of her daughter and granddaughter, and her trembling body soon collapsed under the weight of her grief.
The medics, holding the woman’s hands, slowly led her away from the horrific scene: her face was etched with grief and shock as her loved ones now lay dead on the ground.
‘It’s International Children’s Day. At night, Russia again killed a child in kyiv,” said Andriy Yermak, head of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office.
‘Since 2014, the terrorist country has been committing crimes against little Ukrainians. As of February 24, 2022, no one has any doubts: this is true genocide.’
The Ukrainian General Staff said the Air Force managed to intercept 10 missiles, which it identified as short-range Iskander ballistic missiles.
While most of the incoming weapons were shot down, many kyiv residents are anxious and tired after weeks of sleepless nights listening to the sound of explosions.
The scale of the suffering and indiscriminate attacks on men, women and children in Ukraine have killed at least 8,300 civilians since the war began.
Ukraine’s air defense has become increasingly effective at intercepting Russian drones and missiles, but the resulting debris can start fires and injure people below.
In the Desnianskyi district, debris fell on a children’s hospital and a nearby multi-storey building. Two schools and a police department were damaged.
In another district, Dniprovskyi, a residential building was damaged by burning debris and dense smoke rose, the blast wave blew out windows, parked cars caught fire, and debris fell onto the street and courtyards.
Rescuers and medical workers help an elderly woman whose daughter and granddaughter were killed in the missile attack in kyiv on Thursday.
An elderly woman reacts in front of the body of her daughter who died as a result of a downed missile blast outside a polyclinic in kyiv on Thursday.
A view of a residential building damaged in a Russian missile attack, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in kyiv on Thursday.
A police expert examines the body of a woman who died as a result of a downed missile blast in kyiv on Thursday.
Horrified local residents look at the body of a woman who died as a result of a downed missile blast in kyiv on Thursday.
Men clear rubble next to a residential building damaged during a Russian missile attack, Thursday in kyiv.
Police officers inspect the site of a Russian attack in kyiv on Thursday.
In the Darnytskyi neighborhood, a water pipe and a residential building were affected, and the blast wave broke windows.
After a woman was killed watching an airstrike from her balcony earlier this week, Kiev authorities urged residents to heed warning sirens and stay in shelters or other safe places.
‘You have to be alert as ballistic missiles fly at incredible speeds. From the moment the alarm is announced until the arrival of the rocket, you only have a few seconds! They warned the neighbors in a message.
Ukraine also claimed last month to have shot down some of Russia’s hypersonic Kinzhal missiles, which Russian President Vladimir Putin has touted as a key competitive advantage.
In Russia’s western Belgorod region, at least two people were injured this morning in an attack on the town of Shebekino blamed on Ukrainian troops, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Telegram.
Tonight is tense again for Shebekino. Ukrainian troops were shelling the city for an hour,” he said.
The attacks came as kyiv says it is preparing for a major offensive against Moscow forces.
More than a year after the invasion of Ukraine, Russia has suffered intensified attacks on its soil, including a drone attack on Moscow on Tuesday.
Russia said on Wednesday it was evacuating hundreds of children from villages due to intensifying attacks.
The first 300 evacuated children would be taken to Voronezh, a city about 155 miles further into Russia, Governor Gladkov said. More than 1,000 more children would be transferred to other provinces in the coming days, he added.
On Tuesday, elite districts in and near Moscow came under drone strikes in what a Russian politician called the most dangerous attack on the capital since World War Two.
Several buildings in Moscow’s wealthy suburbs were damaged by suspected Ukrainian kamikaze drones on Tuesday, just hours after Putin unleashed another flurry of attacks on kyiv.
The heartbroken grandmother approached the bodies of her daughter and 11-year-old granddaughter, her trembling body soon collapsing with the weight of her grief.
Paramedics support a woman, who recognized the bodies of her daughter and granddaughter killed during a Russian missile attack, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kiev on Thursday.
Local residents stand near an apartment building damaged in a Russian missile strike in kyiv on Thursday.
The Russian Defense Ministry said eight drones sent to Moscow by Ukraine were shot down or diverted with electronic jammers, though Baza, a Telegram channel with links to security services, said there were more than 25.
Ukraine, which has seen attacks on its capital almost every night, denied any “direct involvement”.
But Putin and his cronies accused Ukraine of trying to “scare” the Russians with its “increasingly reckless behaviour” after the drone attack.
Seemingly forgetting that Russia has unleashed a series of deadly airstrikes on Ukrainian cities that have killed thousands since the start of the war 15 months ago, Putin claimed that Kiev had chosen the “path of trying to scare the citizens of Russia.” .
Putin said the drone strike was revenge for earlier Russian attacks on “command centers.” In reality, the Kremlin has targeted residential buildings in kyiv with its airstrikes.
I am Rakesh Sharma, I associated with Elite News as an Editor, since 2021. I take care of all the news operations like content, budget, hiring and policy making.