Ukraine has accused Russia of committing a war crime after a military hospital was hit in a deadly attack on Kharkiv over the weekend.
Officials said six strikes hit the northeastern city from late Saturday into early Sunday, March 30. The attack wounded patients receiving treatment at the hospital and killed at least two people in a nearby residential building, according to Ukrainian authorities.
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Dmytro Chubenko, a spokesperson for Kharkiv’s regional prosecutor’s office, confirmed that two people died and 30 others were injured, including children.
Emergency responders described the attack as “massive.” One home was destroyed by fire, and several other houses, office buildings, cars, and garages were damaged.
Ukraine’s military said the strike involved a Shahed drone, damaging the hospital and nearby homes. Officials reported that some military personnel receiving treatment at the hospital were among the casualties, but they did not specify how many were injured.
Ukraine’s General Staff called the attack “a war crime” and a violation of international humanitarian law.
“The deliberate and targeted shelling of a Ukrainian medical facility by the Russian army has added to the long list of vile and cynical crimes committed by Russia since the beginning of its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine,” the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said on Facebook.
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Moscow and Kyiv agreed to the concept of a Black Sea truce following talks with US officials earlier this week, but Russia said it would not enter into force until the West lifted certain sanction.
“War crimes have no statute of limitations. The relevant evidence will be submitted to the international criminal justice authorities.”
The attack happened as the United States continues to push for an end to the war, stretching into its fourth year. However, ceasefire talks have made little progress.
Russia has rejected a US-Ukrainian proposal for a full and unconditional ceasefire, while Ukraine has accused Moscow of delaying negotiations with no real intention of stopping its offensive.
“For too long, America’s proposal for an unconditional ceasefire has been on the table without an adequate response from Russia,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a speech Saturday.
He urged stronger international pressure on Moscow and thanked nations that have imposed additional sanctions on Russia.
Both Ukraine and Russia recently discussed a possible truce in the Black Sea during meetings with US officials. However, Russia has said any agreement depends on the West lifting certain sanctions.