At least five cruise missiles struck Kiev on Thursday evening, President Volodymyr Zelensky has claimed, accusing Moscow of carrying out the strike to deliberately “humiliate” the United Nations as Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited the Ukrainian capital.
“This says a lot about Russia’s true attitude to global institutions, about the efforts of the Russian leadership to humiliate the UN, and everything that the organization represents,” Zelensky said in his Thursday night address.
Ukrainian emergency services initially announced that an unspecified “facility” was hit in the Shevchenko district of the city, while a nearby residential building suffered damage to its lower floors. There were no reports of casualties, but Ukrainian authorities later said at least 10 people were injured inside the damaged 25-story high-rise, while media shared photos of firefighters working at the scene.
According to some reports, the unnamed facility may have been the Artem missile development and production plant, with the Guardian claiming the factory had been evacuated and stood empty since February.