At least four people are believed to have been killed and at least 80 injured. According to Ukrainian authorities, dozens of residential buildings, several schools and a water supply facility were attacked and a market was set on fire.
Vanya, 13, whose kyiv apartment was hit during the attack, escaped unharmed. “I really hope my neighbors and friends are alive,” he told UNICEF staff at the scene.
UNICEF described the massive and sustained attack as a “terrifying night for children and families.”
Awakened by ‘terrifying sounds of war’
Matthias Schmale, a senior U.N. official in Ukraine, said he and his colleagues, like all residents of kyiv, had once again been awakened in the middle of the night by the “thrilling sounds of war.”
The strike, Schmale noted, lasted about seven hours and falling debris sparked fires throughout the city. “Civilians live with immense risks as a result of this relentless violence,” stated the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator. “The widespread pattern of harm to civilians must stop.”
WHO offices affected
The kyiv offices of the World Health Organization (WHO) were among the buildings affected by the overnight attack.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a social media post that debris from one of the attacks damaged windows on the third floor of a building that houses several U.N. agencies. No staff members were injured.
Tedros called for an end to attacks on health facilities and civilians and reiterated WHO calls for a ceasefire. “Peace,” he said, “is the best medicine.”