Ukraine said the death toll in a Russian missile attack on a northern city had risen to 17 as Volodymyr Zelenskiy criticized his country’s partners for failing to provide sufficient protection against such strikes.
Ukraine’s air force claimed Friday it shot down a Russian strategic bomber, but Moscow officials said the plane crashed in a sparsely populated area due to a malfunction after a combat mission. Previous Ukrainian claims of shooting down Russian warplanes during their more than two-year war have met with silence or denials from Moscow.
Ukraine said Friday that, for the first time since Russia's invasion, it had downed a Russian long-range bomber used to fire cruise missiles at cities across the war-battered country.
After strikes in Ukraine this week, Ukrainian officials lamented that their country lacked the Western defense support that was so readily provided for Israel.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has pleaded with Western countries to provide more air defense equipment, including more surface-to-air Patriot guided missile systems.
KYIV, Ukraine >> Three Russian missiles slammed into a downtown area of the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv today, hitting an eight-floor apartment building and killing at least 17 people, authorities said.
Russian occupation forces attempted to storm Ukrainian positions on six fronts over the past day, with most attacks taking place on the Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Novopavlivka fronts. In total, 82 combat clashes occurred over the past 24 hours.