At least three civilians were killed and 20 hospitalized after a Russian drone strike hit a dormitory building in the area around the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, Ukrainian police said early Wednesday morning.
Police and emergency personnel evacuated more than 200 people, according to Andriy Nebytov, the head of police for the Kyiv region. One part of the dormitory building was almost completely destroyed and a fire started. Nebytov added that the fates of another five people are currently unknown.
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The police chief said the first explosions rang out at about 3 a.m. local time and were then followed by another series.
At least three civilians dead and seven wounded because of a Shakhed attack in the Kyiv region. The drone attacked the student’s dormitory, according to the emergency service #StopRussia pic.twitter.com/3DsnRcZgCZ
— Iuliia Mendel (@IuliiaMendel) March 22, 2023
"We see that the enemy once again attacked the civilian infrastructure, innocent people were killed, including the ambulance driver who came to rescue citizens. This is another shameful war crime of the occupier," Nebytov said, adding that casualties can and must be avoided by people paying attention to air warning signals.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tweeted his outrage over the Russian "terror" against his country, pointing out where the weapons came from.
"Over 20 Iranian murderous drones, plus missiles, numerous shelling occasions, and that's just in one last night of Russian terror against [Ukraine]. Every time someone tries to hear the word "peace" in Moscow, another order is given there for such criminal strikes," Zelensky said.
"The success of [Ukrainian] forces on the land, in the sky and at sea really brings peace closer. Full compliance with the sanctions regime against Russia really restores the force of the UN Charter. Global unity can restore global stability," he added.
As of last month, a year after Russia invaded Ukraine, at least 8,000 "non-combatants" in Ukraine had been confirmed killed and nearly 13,300 injured, according to data from the UN Human Rights Office. The real number, it notes, is likely substantially higher.
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Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida made a surprise visit to Kyiv on Tuesday, expressing "great anger" over the murder of Ukrainian civilians by Russian forces. His trip coincided with Chinese leader Xi Jinping's visit to Moscow.