Russian missile strikes hit residential buildings in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early on Sunday, burying some people under rubble and hospitalising at least four, the city’s mayor said.
Four explosions were heard at around 6:30 am (0330 GMT), half an hour after air raid sirens sounded in the city, which had not come under Russian bombardment for nearly three weeks.
The missiles struck just hours before the start of a G7 summit in Germany and prompted calls from Ukraine for a stronger response to the Russian invasion.
The top three floors of an around 10-storey building in the Shevchenkivsky neighbourhood were completely destroyed and several fires broke out, spewing out thick smoke.
Several hours later, firefighters were still struggling to control two blazes.
Four people were hospitalised, including a seven-year-old girl who lived on the ninth floor and was rescued from the rubble, Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram.
AFP reporters witnessed the girl’s mother being rescued, a process that took several hours.
The mother was trapped under a concrete slab, according to rescuers.
Authorities described her as a Russian citizen around the age of 30, who was subsequently taken to hospital in a serious condition.
Another missile hit a nearby kindergarten, apparently without causing any casualties.
Klitschko said that rescue operations were ongoing and warned that the toll from the strikes could still rise.