One dead, 34 wounded in Russian strike in Ukraine’s Kharkiv

KYIV: Russian bombardment of a building in Ukraine’s second city of Kharkiv killed one child and wounded over two dozen, the local governor said Thursday.

A guided aerial bomb -- a powerful weapon widely used by Russia -- hit a building in the major northeastern city on Wednesday evening, according to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The attack killed a 12-year-old boy and wounded 34 people, according to an updated toll from governor Oleg Synegubov.

He had previously reported two dead, including an 11-year-old.

Synegubov posted photos of a gaping hole in the facade of a tall building, around which rescuers were working.

“The rubble is still being cleared. There may still be people under the rubble,“ Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said.

The city’s mayor Igor Terekhov said earlier that people were trapped in the upper floors of the building.

The airstrike destroyed several floors, he added.

Kharkiv lies around 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the Russian border and has been pounded by Russian aerial attacks throughout the two-and-a-half-year war.

On Wednesday evening, Zelensky called on his Western allies to act in response to the strike.

“Every decision they delay means at least dozens or even hundreds of such Russian bombs against Ukraine. Their decisions mean the lives of our people,“ he said on Telegram.

Zelensky has been asking Western countries to provide Ukraine with better defences, particularly long-range weapons.

Ukrainian defence downed two missiles and 17 drones launched by Russia overnight, the air force said Thursday.