THE DEATH TOLL from a Russian missile strike on Ukraine’s city of Poltava has risen to 55 people, with over 300 wounded, according to Ukrainian officials.
The strike hit the Poltava military communications institute on Tuesday, according to Ukrainian officials who did not specify how many of the victims were military or civilians.
On Tuesday, the official toll stood at 51 people killed in one of one of the single deadliest strikes of the two-and-a-half-year war.
“Poltava — the death toll from a Russian missile attack on an educational institution in the city has risen to 55. 328 people were injured,” Ukraine’s emergency services said.
People could still be trapped under the rubble, it added, two days after two ballistic missiles hit the city, in central Ukraine.
The attack triggered widespread condemnation including from Washington, which denounced it as “another horrific reminder of (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s brutality”.
It also prompted criticism in Ukraine after unconfirmed reports said the strikes had targeted an outdoor military ceremony. Many commentators blamed officials for letting the event take place despite the threat of attacks.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has ordered an investigation into the circumstances of the strike.
Russia said a missile attack it launched on the Ukrainian city of Poltava had targeted a Ukrainian army “training centre” and that the strike had achieved its “objectives”.
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