Russian strike near Kyiv results in 37 fatalities amid ongoing attacks

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — At least 37 people have been killed following a Russian strike close to the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, officials said Saturday, marking one of the deadliest attacks in Ukraine this year. The attack ignited a fire in the Bucha district, west of Kyiv, damaging at least 50 residential buildings, according to Tymur Tkachenko, head of the local regional military administration. The strike occurred during a period of nearly continuous Russian air raids on Kyiv, which have persisted for three days, significantly impacting the economy and civilian life in the capital more than 4½ years after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the situation as “terrible” and criticized the negligence regarding the storage of explosives near civilian areas. Zelensky stated that a warehouse had been struck in the village of Myla, which was followed by a detonation. He noted that Ukrainian law prohibits the storage of ammunition close to civilian homes and that criminal proceedings had been initiated. Zelensky emphasized the need for accountability for those responsible for these decisions. The strike also damaged a care home for elderly individuals and people with disabilities, with Tkachenko reporting that 34 of the deceased were residents of the facility. Ukrainian Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi referenced a previous attack on the Kyiv suburb of Vyshneve in July, which targeted an ammunition depot and resulted in 22 fatalities. He remarked on the need to learn from past tragedies to prevent future occurrences. Russia's Ministry of Defense claimed that it targeted a warehouse in Myla storing components for long-range drones and also attacked ports and logistics centers in the Kyiv region. Zelensky later announced that two officials from state-owned companies would be held accountable for the illegal storage of weapons in Vyshneve. Drone attacks across Ukraine have increased since Thursday, with Russian strikes in the southern Kherson region resulting in two deaths and 27 injuries, according to Oleksandr Prokudin, head of the region's administration. Prokudin noted that the attacks had damaged homes and that one child was among the injured. He also urged residents to evacuate to safer areas due to the risk of prolonged power and heating outages this winter. Russia has intensified its use of jet-powered drones, with Pavlo Palisa, deputy head of Ukraine’s presidential office, stating that the number of such drones will continue to grow. He highlighted the challenges in defense against these attacks and the need for adaptation. Meanwhile, Ukraine has increased its long-range strikes on Russian military and energy facilities, aiming to disrupt Moscow's revenue and impact the Russian population. Zelensky announced a goal of increasing long-range strikes to 1,000 drone launches per day, up from the current average of over 300. Russia's Ministry of Defense reported the destruction of 313 Ukrainian drones overnight, while Ukrainian drone attacks in Russia's Rostov region resulted in injuries to 11 individuals, including four children.