Russian missiles struck near Lviv’s airport in the far west of Ukraine early Friday, as Moscow expanded a countrywide aerial bombardment campaign that has intensified allegations of war crimes and deliberate targeting of civilians.
Mayor Andriy Sadovyi said Russian forces had destroyed an aircraft repair plant — which sits near the Polish border.
Ambulance and police vehicles raced to the scene, while motorists were turned away at checkpoints. An AFP reporter saw a thick pall of smoke billowing over the airport.
“Several missiles hit an aircraft repair plant,” the mayor said on the messaging app Telegram, adding that the plant had been destroyed.
Located 70 kilometres (45 miles) from the border, Lviv had until now largely escaped military strikes from Russian forces.
But as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s three-week-old ground offensive has stalled under fierce Ukrainian resistance, Moscow has increasingly turned to air and long-range strikes to gain the upper hand. According to Pentagon estimates, Russia has now fired over 1,000 missiles at Ukrainian targets since the war began. Before dawn broke on Friday, air raid alarms had rung in cities across the country.
Ukraine’s government listed a kindergarten and market in the eastern city of Kharkiv among the latest targets. Several cities from Sumy in the north to Mariupol in the south are virtually under siege — cut off from supplies and facing near-constant attack. In his latest night-time video message, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky admitted the situation in several Ukrainian cities was “difficult.” But, he said, “we will not leave you behind and we will not forgive them. You will be free.”
In the besieged southern city of Mariupol, rescue workers were still searching desperately for any survivors buried beneath the rubble of a bombed-out theatre, amid fears that hundreds may be trapped.-AFP
