Kyiv rescuers find more bodies as death toll from latest Russian aerial attack climbs to 28
In this aerial photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, searchers sift through the wreckage on the site of Russia's Tuesday deadly missile attack that ruined a multistory residential building in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, June 18, 2025. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)
By JUSTIN SPIKE and ILLIA NOVIKOV
Emergency workers pulled more bodies Wednesday from the rubble of a nine-story Kyiv apartment building demolished by a Russian missile, raising the death toll from the latest attack on the Ukrainian capital to 28.
The building in Kyiv's Solomianskyi district took a direct hit and collapsed during the deadliest Russian attack on Kyiv this year. Authorities said that 23 of those killed were inside the building. The remaining five died elsewhere in the city.
Workers used cranes, excavators and their hands to clear more debris from the site, while sniffer dogs searched for buried victims. The blast blew out windows and doors in neighboring buildings in a wide radius of damage.
The attack overnight on Monday into Tuesday was part of a sweeping barrage as Russia once again sought to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses. Russia fired more than 440 drones and 32 missiles in what Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said was one of the biggest bombardments of the war, now in its fourth year.
Russia has launched a summer offensive on parts of the roughly 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line and has intensified long-range attacks that have struck urban residential areas.
At the same time, U.S.-led peace efforts have failed to grain traction. Also, Middle East tensions and U.S. trade tariffs have drawn world attention away from Ukraine's pleas for more diplomatic and economic pressure to be placed on Russia.
The U.S. Embassy in Kyiv said the attack clashed with the attempts by the administration of President Donald Trump to reach a settlement that will stop the fighting.
'This senseless attack runs counter to President Trump's call to stop the killing and end the war,' the embassy posted on social platform X.
Kyiv authorities declared Wednesday an official day of mourning. Mourners laid flowers on swings and slides at a playground across the street from the collapsed building. On Tuesday, a man had waited hours there for his 31-year-old son's body to be pulled from the rubble.
Psychologists from Ukraine's emergency services provided counseling to survivors of the attack and to family members of those who died.
'Some people are simply in a stupor, they simply can't move,' Karyna Dovhal, one of the psychologists, told AP. 'People are waiting for their sons, brothers, uncles ... Everyone is waiting.'
Valentin Hrynkov, a 64-year-old handyman in a local school who lived on the seventh floor of a connected building that did not collapse, said he and his wife woke up to the sound of explosions followed by a pause, and then another blast that rattled their own building.
He said his wife had shrapnel injuries in her back and his legs and feet were cut by broken glass. The damage trapped them in their apartment for around 30 minutes before rescue workers could free them, he said.
He felt an overwhelming sense of 'helplessness and primal fear' during the attack, he told The Associated Press.
'I was especially scared to sleep last night,' Hrynkov said. 'A car drives by and I cover my head. It's scary.'
By dawn on Tuesday, residents of buildings in the densely populated neighborhood could be seen huddled in ground-floor entryways to seek shelter from the ongoing drone assault.
Drones were striking every few minutes within hundreds of meters of the building hit by the missile. The continuing attack forced firefighters and rescue teams to delay the rescue operation.
Relatives and friends of the destroyed building's residents later gathered outside in shock, many crying and calling out names, hoping survivors might still be found beneath the rubble.
Vasilisa Stepanenko and Oleksandr Babenko contributed from Kyiv, Ukraine.
© Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yomiuri Shimbun
38 minutes ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Israeli Strikes Kill at Least 72 People in Gaza as Ceasefire Prospects Move Closer
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli strikes killed at least 72 people across Gaza overnight and into Saturday, health workers said, as ceasefire prospects were said to be improving after 21 months of war. Three children and their parents were killed in an Israeli strike on a tent camp in Muwasi near the southern city of Khan Younis. They were struck while sleeping, relatives said. 'What did these children do to them? What is their fault?' said the children's grandmother, Suad Abu Teima, as others knelt to kiss their bloodied faces and wept. Some placed red flowers into the body bags. Also among the dead were 12 people near the Palestine Stadium in Gaza City, which was sheltering displaced people, and eight more in apartments, according to staff at Shifa Hospital. More than 20 bodies were taken to Nasser Hospital, according to health officials. A midday strike killed 11 people on a street in eastern Gaza City, and their bodies were taken to Al-Ahli Hospital. Another strike on a gathering in eastern Gaza City killed eight including five children, the hospital said. A strike on a gathering at the entrance to the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza killed two, according to Al-Awda Hospital. Hopes for a ceasefire agreement in the coming week U.S. President Donald Trump says there could be a ceasefire agreement within the next week. Taking questions from reporters on Friday, he said, 'We're working on Gaza and trying to get it taken care of.' An official with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press that Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer will arrive in Washington next week for talks on a Gaza ceasefire, Iran and other subjects. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. Indirect talks between Israel and Hamas have been on again, off again since Israel broke the latest ceasefire in March, continuing its military campaign in Gaza and furthering the territory's dire humanitarian crisis. Some 50 hostages remain in Gaza, fewer than half believed to still be alive. They were among 251 hostages taken when Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, sparking the war. 'What more is left to do in Gaza that has not already been done? Who else is left to eliminate?' Yotam Cohen, brother of hostage Nimrod Cohen, said Saturday evening as weekly rallies by families and supporters resumed following Israel's ceasefire with Iran. Over 6,000 killed since latest ceasefire ended The war has killed over 56,000 Palestinians, according to the Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. It says more than half of the dead were women and children. It said the dead include 6,089 killed since the end of the latest ceasefire. Israel says it only targets militants and blames civilian deaths on Hamas, accusing the militants of hiding among civilians because they operate in populated areas. There is hope among families of hostages that Trump's involvement in securing the recent ceasefire between Israel and Iran might lead to more pressure for a deal in Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is riding a wave of public support for the Iran war and its achievements, and he could feel he has more space to move toward ending the war in Gaza, something his far-right governing partners oppose. Hamas has repeatedly said it is prepared to free all the hostages in exchange for an end to the war in Gaza. Netanyahu says he will end the war only once Hamas is disarmed and exiled, something the group has rejected. Hundreds have been killed while seeking food Meanwhile, hungry Palestinians are enduring a catastrophic situation in Gaza. After blocking all food for 2 1/2 months, Israel has allowed only a trickle of supplies into the territory since mid-May. More than 500 Palestinians have been killed and hundreds more wounded while seeking food since the newly formed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation began distributing aid in the territory about a month ago, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Palestinian witnesses say Israeli troops have opened fire at crowds on roads heading toward the sites. The Israeli military says it has only fired warning shots and that it was investigating incidents in which civilians had been harmed while approaching the sites. Thousands of Palestinians walk for hours to reach the sites, moving through Israeli military zones. Separate efforts by the United Nations to distribute limited food have been plagued by armed gangs looting trucks and by crowds of desperate people offloading supplies from convoys. Saturday's death toll included two people killed by Israeli gunfire while waiting to receive aid near the Netzarim corridor, a road that separates northern and southern Gaza, according to Al-Shifa and Al-Awda hospitals, which each received one body. There was no immediate Israeli military comment.
Yomiuri Shimbun
an hour ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Uganda's President Seeks a Seventh Term That Would Bring Him Closer to 5 Decades in Power
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Saturday sought nomination for a seventh term, a move that would bring him closer to five decades in power in the East African country. Museveni, 80, has defied calls for his retirement, as critics warn that he has veered into authoritarianism with virtually no opposition, including within his governing National Resistance Movement party. He was welcomed by a large crowd of supporters as he went to collect nomination papers from the party's offices in Kampala, the capital. He said in a speech to his followers that, if reelected, one of his goals is to fight official corruption. 'In this time I want us really to wipe out corruption,' he said. Museveni first took power as head of a rebel force in 1986. He has since been elected six times, though recent elections have been marred by violence and allegations of vote rigging. His main opponent in the last election was the popular entertainer known as Bobi Wine, who has also declared his candidacy in the polls set for January. Wine, whose real name is Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, has seen many associates jailed or go into hiding as security forces cracked down on opposition supporters. Museveni has dismissed Wine as 'an agent of foreign interests' who can't be trusted with power. Wine has been arrested many times on various charges, but has never been convicted. He insists he's running a nonviolent campaign. Decades ago, Museveni himself had criticized African leaders who overstayed their welcome in office. In Uganda, lawmakers did the same thing for him when they jettisoned the last constitutional obstacle — age limits — for a possible life presidency. His son, army chief Muhoozi Kainerugaba, has asserted his wish to succeed his father, raising fears of hereditary rule. A long-time opposition leader, Kizza Besigye, has been jailed since November over alleged treason charges his lawyers say are politically motivated. Besigye, a physician who retired from Uganda's military at the rank of colonel, is a former president of the Forum for Democratic Change party, for many years Uganda's most prominent opposition group. Uganda has never seen a peaceful transfer of power since independence from Britain in 1962.
Japan Today
6 hours ago
- Japan Today
Around 100,000 march in Budapest Pride in defiance of Hungary's ban
By JUSTIN SPIKE Around 100,000 people defied a government ban and police orders on Saturday to march in what organizers called the largest LGBTQ+ Pride event in Hungary's history in an open rebuke of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's government. Marchers gambled with potential police intervention and heavy fines to participate in the 30th annual Budapest Pride, which was outlawed by a law passed in March by Orbán's right-wing populist governing party. The march began at Budapest City hall and wound through the city center before crossing the capital's Erzsébet Bridge over the Danube River. Police diverted the crowd from its planned route to keep it separated from a small group of far-right counterprotesters, while members of Hungary's LGBTQ+ community and large numbers of supporters danced to music and waved rainbow and anti-government flags. The massive size of the march, which the government for months had insisted would no longer be permitted in Hungary, was seen as a major blow to Orbán's prestige, as the European Union's longest-serving leader's popularity slumps in the polls where a new opposition force has taken the lead. Some participants said that the march wasn't only about defending the fundamental rights of sexual minorities, but also addressed what they see as an accelerating crackdown on democratic processes under Orbán's rule. Orbán and his party have insisted that Pride, a celebration of LGBTQ+ visibility and struggle for equal rights, was a violation of children's rights to moral and spiritual development — rights that a recent constitutional amendment declared took precedence over other fundamental rights, including that to peacefully assemble. The law fast-tracked through parliament in March made it an offense to hold or attend events that 'depict or promote' homosexuality to minors under age 18. Orbán earlier made clear that Budapest Pride was the explicit target of the law. Authorities installed additional cameras throughout the city center before the march, and were expected to use facial recognition tools to identify individuals who attend the banned event. According to the new law, being caught attending Pride could result in fines of up to 200,000 Hungarian forints ($586). The ban was the latest crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights by Orbán's government, which has already effectively banned both same-sex adoption and same-sex marriage and disallowed transgender individuals from changing their sex in official documents. Police rejected several requests by organizers in recent weeks to register the Pride march, citing the recent law. But Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony joined with organizers and declared it would be held as a separate municipal event — something he said that doesn't require police approval. But Hungary's government has remained firm, insisting that holding the Pride march, even if it's sponsored by the city, would be unlawful. Hungary's justice minister this week warned Karácsony that organizing Pride or encouraging people to attend would be punishable by up to a year in prison. More than 70 members of the European Parliament, as well as other officials from countries around Europe, participated in Saturday's march. Hadja Lahbib, the EU's commissioner for humanitarian aid and crisis management, earlier said that 'all eyes are on Budapest' as Pride marchers defy the government's ban. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
