41 people killed, 180 injured in Russian missile strike on Ukraine’s Poltava, says Zelenskyy

At least 41 people were killed and 180 others wounded in attacks by two Russian ballistic missiles that hit a military training facility and nearby hospital in city of Poltava, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday.

Poltava, located about 350 kilometers (200 miles) southeast of Kyiv, is on the main highway and rail route between Kyiv and Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv.

“One of the buildings of the (Poltava Military) Institute of Communications was partially destroyed. People found themselves under the rubble. Many were saved,” Zelenskyy said in a video posted on his Telegram channel.

“All necessary services are involved in the rescue operation,” he added.

Further, Zelenskyy said that he had ordered “a full and prompt investigation” into what has happened.

Ukraine’s Defense Ministry described the attacks as “barbaric”.

It said that the missiles hit shortly after the air raid alert was sounded, when many people were on their way to a bomb shelter.

“The time interval between the alarm and the arrival of the deadly missiles was so short that it caught people in the middle of evacuating to the bomb shelter.”

Rescue crews and medics saved 25 people, 11 of them dug out from the rubble, the Defense Ministry also said.

The latest strike on the city of Poltava appeared to be one of the deadliest attacks carried out by Russian forces since the war began about 3 years ago.

The strike took place in the morning in Poltava, a city with a pre-war population of around 300,000 people.

The Ukrainian president has again appealed to the Western partners to ensure swift delivery of military aid.

“Ukraine needs air defense systems and missiles now, not sitting in storage,” Zelenskyy wrote in English on Telegram.

“Long-range strikes that can protect us from Russian terror are needed now, not later. Every day of delay, unfortunately, means more lost lives,” he said.