Russian Drone Attack in Kharkiv Leaves Three Children Dead

According to regional officials on Saturday, Russia attacked the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv with a drone attack that resulted in the deaths of seven persons, including three small children, the starting of fires, and damage to residential buildings and infrastructure.

Oleh Synehubov, Kharkiv regional governor, said the Russian forces struck the city late on Friday, hitting civilian infrastructure, causing several large fires, and damaging at least 15 residential houses in the east of Kharkiv.

He said on the Telegram messaging service, “Seven people died as a result of the strikes, among them three children: seven, four, and a baby about six months old.”

He reported that three people were hurt.

According to the Ukrainian air force, 23 out of 31 Russian-launched drones that were aimed towards the Odesa region in the south and the Kharkiv region in the northeast of the country were shot down by mobile drone hunting groups and air defense.

In a video sent to Telegram, Oleksandr Filchakov, the head of the prosecutor’s office in Kharkiv, said that three drones struck the gas station located in the city’s Nemyshlianskyi neighborhood.

“There was a lot of fuel, which is why the fire had such terrible effects,” Filchakov stated.

According to officials, firefighters and rescuers toiled through the night to deal with the impact’s aftereffects, put out fires, and navigate through the rubble.

Additionally, according to Synehubov, a restaurant in Velykyi Berluk, a tiny hamlet around 60 miles from Kharkiv, was struck by Russian drones. He said there were no casualties.

Details of the attack could not be independently verified by Reuters. Although it has stated that it does not purposefully target civilian areas, Russia did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Since the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Kharkiv has been the subject of numerous attacks, including several in recent weeks.

The regional governor of Odesa, a port on the Black Sea, reported that one person had been hurt by a drone attack.