Rescue operations have continued for a second day at a major children’s hospital in Kyiv, Ukraine, after being hit by a Russian missile, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported. The strike left 38 people dead and nearly 200 injured as part of an intense daytime attack that targeted cities across the country.
Zelenskyy shared on the social platform X that 64 individuals were hospitalized in Kyiv, with an additional 28 in Kryvyi Rih and six in Dnipro, both located in central Ukraine. This airstrike marked Russia’s most severe bombardment of Kyiv in almost four months, impacting seven out of the city’s 10 districts. The attack on the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital, which disrupted ongoing open-heart surgeries and compelled young cancer patients to receive treatment outdoors, elicited global condemnation.
In response, Kyiv city authorities announced an official day of mourning on Tuesday, with entertainment events prohibited and flags lowered throughout the capital. Despite abundant evidence indicating otherwise, Russia denied responsibility for the hospital’s destruction, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov reiterating this stance and attributing the damage to a Ukrainian air defense missile.
The Russian assault unfolded on Monday ahead of a NATO summit in Washington, where member countries are expected to commit to providing further military and economic assistance to Ukraine. Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin was hosting India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Moscow, underscoring the increasing significance of New Delhi as a crucial trading partner since Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine.
Expressing deep disappointment, Zelenskyy criticized Modi’s visit, stating on X late Monday, “It is a huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts to see the leader of the world’s largest democracy hug the world’s most bloody criminal in Moscow on such a day.”
