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| Frefighters hose down a Policlinic following a Russian attack in Dnipro, Ukraine, May 26, in this handout photo made available by the State Emergency Service of Ukraine. AP-Yonhap |
Russian missiles hit a medical clinic in the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro, Friday, killing at least two people, as Russia blamed Kyiv for dozens of strikes in its southern Belgorod region.
In Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed the Ukraine conflict with China's special envoy Li Hui, blaming Ukraine and Western countries for creating "serious obstacles" to resuming peace talks.
In Belgorod in southern Russia, the governor said the Ukrainian military was responsible for dozens of artillery, mortar and drone attacks across the region but reported no casualties.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted a video of smoke billowing from roofless buildings with blown-out windows after the attack that authorities said had left 30 people injured including two boys aged three and six.
The head of the regional military administration Sergiy Lysak said that Russia struck a residential area with a medical and veterinary clinic and high-rise blocks.
Zelenskyy said that by hitting civilian medical facilities, "Russian terrorists once again confirm their status of fighters against everything humane and honest."
U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, on his third visit to Ukraine, condemned the attack as a war crime.
"There was a hospital bomb today. Just over 500 medical facilities have been hit by the Russians. A war crime was committed while I was here, just one of many war crimes," he said.
The Russian defence ministry said that its strikes on Ukraine had targeted arms depots and that all the assigned targets had been hit.
Ukrainian journalists posted video footage of rescuers helping people with blood on their faces escape from the clinic through corridors full of rubble.
The attack came after Russian forces earlier this week targeted Dnipro in a late night strike with 16 missiles and 20 attack drones.
The industrial hub, which had nearly one million inhabitants before the war, lies around 125 kilometres (78 miles) from the current front line.
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| Police stand in a cordon as firefighters extinguish a fire at a medical facility, the site of a missile strike, in the city of Dnipro, May 26, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. AFP-Yonhap |
'Hostile environment'
The announcement of the attack on Dnipro came as Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said at least five districts of his region in southern Russia had been repeatedly hit by Ukrainian forces over the last 24 hours.
The districts had been attacked by drones, mortars and artillery and the village of Kozinka was struck more than 130 times, he said.
In a rare attack on the southern Russian city of Krasnodar, two drones damaged buildings in the city center, officials said, adding that there were no casualties.
The claims of fresh strikes in the Belgorod region came after an unprecedented two-day incursion from Ukraine claimed by two anti-Kremlin groups this week, with Russia using its air force and artillery to push back the fighters.
Russia's defense ministry has vowed an "extremely harsh" response to any further attacks on its soil.
The apparent exchange of artillery and missile fire reported Friday came one day after Belarusian strongman Alexander Lukashenko said Russia had begun the transfer of nuclear weapons to his tightly controlled country.
The Kremlin, however, stopped short of confirming the start of the transfer, saying only Russia's ally was seeing "aggressive statements" from neighboring countries.
"Belarus is in a very, very hostile environment," spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
In Washington, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre described Russia's move as "yet another example of making irresponsible and provocative choices."
In Brazil, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva declined an invitation Friday to travel to Saint Petersburg during a telephone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"I thanked (Putin) for an invitation to go to the International Economic Forum in Saint Petersburg and replied that I cannot go to Russia at this time," wrote Lula on Twitter about the event scheduled for June 14-17. (AFP)
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