Lviv, July 6 (HS). Russian cruise missiles hit a building in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, killing at least five people. Officials said it was Russia’s deadliest attack on civilian areas of Lviv since its invasion of Ukraine last year.
The overnight attack destroyed the roof and top two floors of a residential building, injuring 36 people. Sniffer dogs have been rushed to search for people buried in the debris. The youngest of the five dead was a 21-year-old man and a 95-year-old woman, according to the governor of Lviv province, Maksim Kojitsky. Kojitsky said that she (the elderly) woman survived World War II, but unfortunately did not survive Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Ukraine’s interior ministry said the last victim had been pulled from the rubble hours after the attack, and seven people buried under the rubble had been rescued alive. About 180 people were provided psychological support after the attack.
Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovayi said about 60 houses and 50 cars were damaged at the site of the attack. They have declared two days of official mourning.
The US ambassador to Ukraine, Brigitte Brink, called the attack “blameless”. He tweeted that Russia’s repeated attacks on civilians are appalling. Ukraine’s air force said it intercepted seven out of 10 cruise missiles fired by Russia from the Black Sea towards the Lviv region and the city of Lviv. The Kremlin’s forces have repeatedly attacked civilian areas during the war, although Russian officials deny this, saying they only choose targets of military importance.
Sadovay said in a video message to citizens that this was the biggest attack on Lviv’s civilian infrastructure since the start of the offensive last year.
Thousands of people from the eastern part of the country have taken refuge in Lviv for safety. The Home Ministry said that 64 people had to leave their homes. Reacting to the incident, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, said that the enemy would surely get a reply. Will get a tough answer. He later left for an official visit to Bulgaria on Thursday at the invitation of the new pro-Western government. The agenda of the visit also includes talks on arms supplies.
Zelensky also posted drone camera footage of the attack, showing pictures of the damaged building. It is visible in the pictures that the third and fourth floors of the building have been destroyed in the attack.
