Ukrainian emergency services said today that a massive Russian missile and drone attack that pummelled Kyiv yesterday killed at least 24 people, further shredding hopes of a halt to Moscow's grinding invasion.
Air raid sirens wailed across the city yesterday before several hours of explosions and flashes in the sky sent Kyiv residents running to shelter in metro stations.
The Ukrainian air force said Russia had launched 675 attack drones and 56 missiles, mainly at Kyiv, adding its air defence units had downed 652 of the drones and 41 missiles.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said 20 sites in the capital were damaged, including homes, a school, a veterinary clinic and other civilian infrastructure.
"Work is still ongoing in Kyiv at the site of the strike on the building - a Russian missile strike that literally levelled a residential block, from the first to the ninth floor," he said in an address last night.
Twenty-four people, including three children, were killed and 47 were wounded in the attacks, Ukraine's emergency service said today, updating a previous death toll.
Watch: Rescuers search for at least 20 missing after Russian attack in Kyiv
Seven bodies were pulled from the rubble of a single destroyed residential building - three men, three women and a girl, police said.
The two nations frequently exchange overnight aerial attacks, and officials in western Russia said this morning that Ukrainian strikes on the city of Ryazan killed three people and wounded at least 12 others.
Russian attacks also wounded people in the southern regions of Odesa and Kherson, and in the eastern region of Kharkiv.
"These are definitely not the actions of those who believe the war is coming to an end. It is important that partners do not remain silent about this strike," Mr Zelensky said.
Ukraine said it shot down 94% of all drones and 73% of the missiles fired by Russia.
"The most difficult challenge is defending against ballistic missiles," he said.
A slew of Ukraine's allies, including the United Kingdom, Estonia, Latvia, Finland, the Netherlands, Moldova and Slovakia, condemned the fatal attacks.
"By bombing civilians, Russia demonstrates less its strength than its weakness: it is running out of solutions on the military front and does not know how to end its war of aggression," French President Emmanuel Macron said.
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said the attacks on Kyiv showed that Russia "openly mocks" efforts to end the war.
Russia, which invaded Ukraine more than four years ago, said the wave of missiles and drones had targeted military-linked sites and energy facilities that support the Ukrainian army.
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Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko announced that today would be a day of mourning in the capital "in memory of the victims of the enemy's most massive attack" on Kyiv.
He said flags will be flown at half-mast and entertainments events will be prohibited.
The conflict is the worst in Europe since World War II and has killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced millions more.
