TERNOPIL, Ukraine — A Russian missile strike on two apartment blocks in the western city of Ternopil killed at least 10 people and wounded dozens more, including 12 children, Ukraine’s interior minister Ihor Klymenko, said Wednesday. It was one of the deadliest attacks on western Ukraine since the war began in 2022.
Rescue crews worked through the night to pull survivors from the rubble as flames consumed nearby cars and homes. Officials warned the death toll could rise, with families still believed to be trapped inside collapsed buildings.
The assault was part of a wider barrage. Strikes also hit the western regions of Lviv and Ivano‑Frankivsk, while drones targeted three districts of Kharkiv in the north, injuring more than 30 people. Photos posted online showed streets littered with debris and flames engulfing residential blocks.
Ukraine’s energy ministry reported power cuts across several regions. Damage to energy facilities and transport hubs compounded the humanitarian toll, leaving hospitals and schools struggling to operate under blackout conditions.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had launched more than 470 drones and 47 missiles in the latest wave, causing “significant destruction.” He warned that civilians remained trapped in Ternopil and urged allies to accelerate air defense support.
In Ivano‑Frankivsk, regional officials confirmed that two of the three wounded were children. Lviv’s governor said an energy facility had been struck, underscoring Russia’s continued targeting of infrastructure far from the front lines.
The strikes followed Ukraine’s admission that it had fired U.S.-supplied long‑range Atacms missiles at Russian military sites, the first time Kyiv acknowledged using the weapons on Russian soil. Moscow’s defense ministry claimed four missiles were aimed at Voronezh but said all were intercepted.
As the attacks unfolded, Zelensky prepared to travel to Ankara for talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The visit comes amid reports that U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff has been working with Russian financier Kirill Dmitriev on a potential framework to end the war. The Kremlin said no Russian officials would attend.
Regional tensions widened. Romania’s defense ministry said a Russian drone crossed 8 kilometers into its airspace before looping through Ukraine and Moldova. Romanian and German fighter jets scrambled in response, though officials said it was unclear where the drone came down. Poland also deployed jets and temporarily closed two airports in its southeast as a precaution.
Local residents in Ternopil described scenes of horror. “We heard a roar, then the building shook. My children were screaming. We ran, but the stairwell was gone,” said one survivor. Emergency workers said the rescue effort was complicated by fires and collapsed structures. “We are digging with our hands. Every minute matters,” one firefighter explained.
Human rights groups condemned the strikes as violations of international law. “Targeting civilian housing is a war crime,” Amnesty International’s Kyiv office stated. International allies expressed solidarity, with Poland’s defense minister vowing not to “stand idle while Russia threatens our region.” Romania called the drone incursion “a dangerous escalation.”
With the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full‑scale invasion approaching in February, both sides remain entrenched. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reiterated that Moscow’s conditions for peace have not changed since President Vladimir Putin outlined them in 2024, leaving little prospect of compromise. Ordinary Ukrainians, meanwhile, voiced fatigue but defiance. “We are tired, but we will not surrender,” said a shopkeeper in Lviv.
