At least nine people died and 23 were injured after Russia struck Ukraine’s capital city Kyiv with ballistic missiles overnight, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said on Saturday morning.

The missiles struck several homes and a five-storey residential building, while cars were also set alight.

Four children were among the 23 injured, the emergency service said.

In a post on his Telegram account, Kyiv Mayor Vitaly Klitschko said that several people were trapped in a damaged residential building during the attack.

The first and second floors of the building had partially collapsed, he said, while some warehouses in the city were also on fire.

Reuters news agency cited witnesses in Kyiv who reported more than a dozen explosions shaking the Ukrainian capital.

The attacks come as Moscow has intensified its bombing campaigns in recent weeks and months.

Last week, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with his US counterpart Donald Trump and the UK’s new prime minister Andy Burnham as he seeks increased support to boost Ukraine’s air defences.

Edited by: Dmytro Hubenko

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