At least 20 people have been killed and dozens injured as three Russian missiles hit Vinnytsia City Centre in Ukraine on Thursday. The strike near the two maternity hospitals has also killed a child as locals found a dead baby inside a stroller.
"3 Russian rockets hit a building with office premises. The Officers' House and nearby residential buildings have also been damaged," according to the head of the National Police of Ukraine, Ihor Klymenko.
Videos that emerged on the internet show massive plumes of smoke rising into the sky and people rushing towards a damaged building to help others.
Dozens of Cars Seen Burnt Outside The Building
Some other videos shared on social media also show dozens of burnt cars outside the building and medics taking injured people to hospitals.
A fire broke out at the site of the strike and spread to a parking lot, where about 50 cars are now burning. Firefighters are working to extinguish the fire. Klymenko sent a specialized investigative and operational group of the Main Investigative Department of the National Police and a forensic laboratory to Vinnytsia, according to Pravda.
Zelensky Calls It Act Of Terrorism
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called it an act of terrorism. "Every day, Russia kills civilians, kills Ukrainian children, carries out missile attacks on civilian facilities, where there is no military target. What is this if not an open act of terrorism," said Zelensky.
Ukraine's State Emergency Service said that the missiles hit the car park of the nine-storey office block at around 10:50 (07:50 GMT). Residential buildings were also hit in the center of Vinnytsia, which has a population of around 3,70,000, according to BBC.
Kyiv has stated that Vinnytsia city center was hit by Kalibr cruise missiles, which were launched possibly from a submarine in the Black Sea.
More to follow
