Ukraine: Deadly Russia strikes hit Kharkiv apartment block

Richard Jones March 8, 2026

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Ukraine: Russia’s Deadly Strikes Target Kharkiv Apartment Block

Russian forces launched overnight drone and missile attacks across Ukraine, resulting in the deaths of at least ten individuals and injuries to over a dozen others, including minors. The strikes disrupted peace talks seeking to end the conflict, which have paused due to the ongoing war in the Middle East following U.S.-led assaults on Iran.

Kharkiv Hit by Ballistic Missile Attack

A ballistic missile strike damaged a five-story residential building in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, killing at least ten people—among them two children—and wounding sixteen more. Rescue teams searched through debris on Saturday, with reports indicating several individuals remained trapped beneath the rubble.

“There must be a response from partners to these savage strikes against life,” said President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on X. He noted Russia deployed 29 missiles, half of them ballistic, alongside 480 drones, most Iranian-designed Shaheds, during the attack.

Kharkiv Mayor Igor Terekhov confirmed casualties included a six-year-old boy, an 11-year-old boy, and a 17-year-old girl. Regional Governor Oleh Syniehubov added that two children were among the dead. The attack also damaged seven residential complexes, commercial and administrative structures, electricity lines, and vehicles in the city.

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s state rail operator reported disruptions to rail routes in the central-west region due to strikes targeting infrastructure. Air raid sirens blared nationwide as Poland scrambled military aircraft to safeguard its airspace near the border.

Preliminary data indicated Ukrainian air defenses intercepted 19 missiles and 453 drones. Zelenskyy highlighted damage in multiple regions, including Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Vinnytsia, Odesa, Poltava, Sumy, and Cherkasy, with local authorities reporting casualties in Kyiv, Zaporizhzhia, and Chuhuiv. In the Sumy region, a 24-year-old man died when his car was hit by a drone.