Russian bombs kill five in Kharkiv, damage residences

Russian bombs struck a residential area in Ukraine's northeastern city of Kharkiv on Monday, killing five people, injuring more than 50 and shattering apartment buildings, officials said.

Oleh Syniehubov, governor of the northeastern region, said on Telegram that three bombs had hit different areas of the city. He said 53 people were injured, with 30 of them being treated in hospital, three in a serious condition. Three of the injured were children.

Mayor Ihor Terehov said emergency crews had recovered two bodies from rubble. Facades and balconies on residential buildings were badly damaged and apartments inside were smashed. Rescue workers led stunned residents out of buildings, guiding them carefully around piles of rubble.

"We saw two wounded neighbours covered in blood. My daughter went outside, and our cat ran away," resident Viktoriia Nahornyak told Reuters Television over the wail of an air raid siren. "I only grabbed my documents and went outside in the clothes I'm wearing right now."

One resident was found dead in his bed. Another body lay on the ground, covered with a blanket. Officials said warehouses were also damaged in the strike.

Kharkiv, located 30 km (18 miles) from the Russian border, has withstood sustained Russian attacks and suffered considerable damage since the outset of the war in February 2022.