Day 866: Russian missile strikes kill more than 30, injure more than 150 others across Ukraine

Russian missile strikes damage the Okhmatdyt children’s clinic and a maternity hospital in Kyiv, kill more than 30 and injure more than 150 others across Ukraine. A children’s hospital in Kyiv was targeted on purpose as Ukraine shot down 30 out of 38 missiles. Missiles flew very low off the ground, Ukraine’s Air Force says, commenting on a Monday attack.

Russian missile strikes damage children’s clinic, maternity hospital in Kyiv, kill more than 30 across Ukraine

On the morning and in the afternoon on Monday, Russia launched a series of missile barrages on cities across Ukraine, including Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih and others. It was one of Russia’s heaviest and deadliest bombardments of the country in months. The attack included missiles launched from Tu-95 strategic bombers and a MiG-31K interceptor, cruise missiles launched from ships and land-based rockets. 

More than 30 people were killed, and more than 150 others wounded. At least 25 people, including two children, were killed in Kyiv and 96 more, including at least seven children, were wounded. Ten were confirmed dead and another 48 were wounded in Kryvyi Rih. The missile strike killed one person and wounded 12 others in Dnipro. Three people were killed in Pokrovsk, in Donetsk region.  

Fifty civilian buildings, including residential houses, a business centre and two medical facilities were damaged in Kyiv, Kryvyi Rih, Dnipro and two eastern cities. The damaged medical facilities included the Okhmatdyt children’s clinic and a maternity hospital in Kyiv.

Children’s hospital in Kyiv targeted on purpose as Ukraine shoots down 30 out of 38 missiles 

According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russia launched 38 missiles of different types at Ukraine on Monday, including: 

• one Kh-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missile,
• four Iskander-M ground-launched ballistic missiles,
• one 3M22 Zircon hypersonic cruise missile,
• 13 Kh-101 air-launched cruise missiles,
• 14 Kalibr sea-launched cruise missiles,
• two Kh-22 cruise missiles launched from bombers, and
• three Kh-59/Kh-69 guided missiles. 

Ukraine’s Air Force said it intercepted 30 missiles, including:

• one Kh-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missile,
• three Iskander-M ground-launched ballistic missiles,
• 11 Kh-101 air-launched cruise missiles,
• 12 Kalibr sea-launched cruise missiles,
• three Kh-59/Kh-69 guided missiles.

A Russian missile strike on the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital injured 50 people, including at least seven children, and killed two adults, including a doctor. Russia deliberately targeted the clinic, according to OSINT reports. A video circulating on social media shows a missile hitting the hospital without being intercepted.

Ukraine’s Security Service classified the attack as a war crime and started criminal proceedings to investigate what happened. Russia used a Kh-101 cruise missile in the Okhmatdyt’s bombardment, the Security Service of Ukraine said, referring to the missile’s debris found on-site. It said officers discovered fragments of the hull of the rear of the missile, as well as a serial number and part of the rudder.

“The Security Service of Ukraine will do everything possible for the enemy to experience maximum response for each of its war crimes, including today’s strike on Ukraine. The response will be based on law and the moral law. Terrorist state is not an abstract notion, and there are names of the killers. Nothing will save them from justice,” head of Ukraine’s Security Service, Vasyl Malyuk, said. 

Missiles flew very low off the ground, Ukraine’s Air Force says, commenting on Monday attack

Commenting on Russia’s Monday attack, a representative of the Ukrainian Air Force, Colonel Yuriy Ihnat said cruise missiles were flying very low off the ground, making it more difficult for the air defenses to detect them.  

Russia also launched a missile strike at Ukraine in the early hours of Monday, bringing the total number of missiles fired on Monday to 44. Ukraine’s air defenses shot down 33 of them, Ihnat said.

“Unfortunately, it is not just reconnaissance and attack drones that Russia is constantly improving, but also cruise and ballistic missiles,” Ihnat said. It becomes more difficult to detect and destroy them. Russia equips its missiles with enhancements, including so-called early warning and heat traps that evade air defense systems.

“In [Monday’s] attack, the cruise missiles flew very low off the ground. At times the air defenses were engaging targets at the height of less than 50 meters, which could result in horrible consequences on the ground. Do not ignore air raid alerts, especially when there are reports of missiles or drones flying in your direction. Take care of yourself and your loved ones,” Ihnat said.

Decolonization processes in the modern Russian Federation. Ukraine in Flames #634

In this episode of Ukraine in Flames, we discuss the decolonization efforts within the modern Russian Federation, focusing on oppressed ethnicities and communities. The experts discuss Russia’s internal conflicts and the urgent need for its disintegration into sovereign states to achieve lasting peace, plus the irony of  Buddhist regions in Russia taking part in military operations, a people that are supposed to be against all types of aggression. Watch UIF #634 to learn more about the importance of a disintergrated Russia and how this will bring just peace.

Guests:

• Mykhailo Kubliy, expert at the Ukrainian Strategic Studies Center, lecturer at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, PhD in History 
• Yuriy Oliynyk, Head of Research Programs at the Ukrainian Strategic Studies Center, PhD in Political Science
• Yuriy Syrotyuk, Director of the Ukrainian Strategic Studies Center, Junior Sergeant of the 5th Separate Assault Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine