PRYLUKY, Ukraine -- Rescuers frantically picked through rubble and debris of a destroyed apartment building in northern Ukraine as they search for survivors of a Russian missile attack that killed at least 18 people.
At least 20 people nationwide, including two in the capital Kyiv, were killed in the October 7 barrage.
The bombardment was part of near-daily attacks that have steadily increased in frequency and ferocity, as the Kremlin struggles on the battlefield front line.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called it one of the "most vile" attacks in recent memory, and he noted they occurred on the birthday of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russian forces "destroyed" a residential building "as a birthday 'gift' to Putin," Zelenskyy said in a post to X.
At least 10 other such buildings were damaged elsewhere, along with Ukraine's energy infrastructure, one of Moscow's other "key targets," he said.
In Pryluky, which is about 150 kilometers east of Kyiv, firefighters, emergency workers, and local volunteers dug through bricks and building debris searching for survivors of the attack. The five-story building was mostly torn apart by the Russian strike with its roof destroyed, windows blown out.
"The fire was right in front of my eyes. There were explosions. I was screaming in my apartment. Extremely scary. I can't describe it," one woman, who gave her name as Lidiya, told Current Time.
"So many people have died. I knew everyone here," she added, holding back tears.
With a fifth wartime winter approaching, Russian strikes on Ukraine have become a daily occurrence.
Moscow has previously sought to pressure Kyiv into accepting its hard-line demands by attacking the country's energy infrastructure and leaving thousands without heat or electricity amid freezing temperatures.
Since this year, however, Kyiv has increasingly responded to Russian attacks with a campaign of long-range strikes targeting military and energy sites inside Russia and middle-range strikes targeting its key logistics in Ukraine's occupied eastern and southern regions.
Tanker Hit In Black Sea
Following the latest Russian attacks, Zelenskyy later reported on what he called Kyiv's "just responses." He said Ukrainian forces had targeted two of Russia's oil facilities and a military training ground overnight on October 7, adding, "There was also a response in the Black Sea."
Hours earlier, Russia's Transport Ministry said a Liberian-flagged tanker had been attacked by "naval drones" near the Black Sea resort city of Sochi.
The ministry reported an intense fire following the attack, saying that "crude oil is burning openly" on the surface of the Black Sea. It later added that the crew of 23, all Indian citizens, had been rescued and the fire had been extinguished.
According to the Ukrainian monitoring site BlackSeaNews, the vessel was used by Russia as part of its so-called shadow fleet, a network of vessels used to transport Russian fuel and evade sanctions.
Sochi's local authorities said access to the city's coast and beaches was being restricted. Previous Ukrainian strikes on energy targets in southern Russia have caused oil slicks, prompted beach closures, and led to toxic black rainfall.
The developments came amid renewed US interest in negotiating a diplomatic settlement to the long-running war.
While US President Donald Trump has long said it is one of the key goals of his presidency, Kyiv and Moscow remain far apart in their negotiating positions.
Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, the Kremlin has shown no willingness to compromise on its key demands, including full control over Ukraine's key eastern Donetsk region, a stronghold Russian forces have not yet been able to capture.
