Death toll rises in Russian attack on Ukrainian city of Dnipro

by Julia Mueller - 01/15/23 8:37 AM ET

Emergency workers clear the rubble after a Russian rocket hit a multistory building leaving many people under debris in the southeastern city of Dnipro, Ukraine, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

The death toll in the city of Dnipro in east-central Ukraine has risen to 21 after a Russian missile strike hit a nine-story residential building, according to local officials.

Another 73 people were injured, including 14 children, said the head of the Dnipropetrovsk Regional Council, Mykola Lukashuk, in a Telegram post. One child is among the dead, and rescuers are still working to recover 35 missing Ukrainians.

“Burn in hell, Russian murderers,” Lukashuk wrote.

Moscow launched missile strikes against Dnipro and other parts of Ukraine in recent days, its first major move in almost two weeks.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in his nightly address to Ukrainians bashed Russia for hitting civilian targets.

“In the city of Dnipro, a residential building has been destroyed in this Russian strike. An ordinary nine-story panel building, of which there are quite a few in various cities of Eastern and Central Europe. All floors of this building – from the second to the ninth – were smashed in the explosion of a Russian missile,” Zelensky said.

“It’s not yet known how many people are under the rubble. Unfortunately, the death toll is growing every hour … My condolences to relatives and friends,” Zelensky said.

Moscow’s strikes also targeted Kyiv, Kharkiv and Odesa, among other Ukrainian cities.