Russia Ukraine war live: Kyiv downs 31 missiles from Putin’s forces as ten injured

Ukraine‘s capital was attacked by Russia for the first time in 44 days Thursday as Kyiv residents woke early to loud explosions.

Ukraine‘s Emergency Service said 13 people were wounded, including one child, and that dozens of people were evacuated from their homes.

Around 30 cruise and ballistic missiles were shot down over the city, said Serhii Popko, the head of Kyiv City Administration.

In the Shevchenkivskyi district in western Kyiv, an apartment in a multistory building and cars were set on fire as a result of the Russian attack, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.

The attack comes after Ukraine has continuously attacked Russia‘s Belgorod region near the border with Ukraine for several days.

Russia’s Belgorod region has come under increasing Ukrainian attacks this month as the invasion by Moscow grinds into its third year.

A look at the region and its role in the war:

The region of forests, farmland and rolling hills has a 540-kilometer (335-mile) border along Ukraine’s northeastern edge. It has an area of over 27,000 square kilometers (about 10,500 square miles), and has a population of about 1.5 million.

It holds about 40% of Russia‘s iron ore and other minerals, and is home to several major industrial companies and farms.

Russia launched a missile attack on Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, early on Thursday, injuring at least 10 people and damaging residential buildings and industrial facilities, city officials said.

Mayor Vitali Klitschko said at least 10 people were injured across the city. An 11-year-old girl was among the two people taken to hospital, city officials said.

Ukraine‘s air defences shot down all 31 Russian missiles targeting the capital, the air force commander said.

The first large attack in recent weeks targeted the city with both ballistic and cruise missiles, said Serhiy Popko, the head of its military administration.

“After a pause of 44 days, the enemy launched another missile attack on Kyiv,” he said. “All emergency services are working on sites. Clearing the consequences of the missile attack is underway.”

Popko said the Russian military used strategic bombers and also launched some missiles from its territory, while following complicated manoeuvres in neighbouring regions, the missiles targeted the city from different directions.

Russia’s Belgorod region has come under increasing Ukrainian attacks this month as the invasion by Moscow grinds into its third year.

A look at the region and its role in the war:

European Union lawmakers agreed Wednesday to renew Ukraine’s import rates, which have been in place since shortly after Russia invaded, while adding protective measures for agricultural products such as grain and honey to address the concerns of farmers across the 27-nation bloc.

Farmers angry at red tape and competition from cheap imports from select countries have been vehemently protesting in recent weeks across the bloc. Poland was among the countries leading the charge against duty-free imports after Polish farmers blocked border crossings with Ukraine in February, spilling Ukrainian grain and burning tires as they intensified a nationwide protest against the import of Ukrainian foods and European Union environmental policies.

A Russian border region being pounded by Ukrainian shelling and drones is expanding its closure of schools and colleges amid a major evacuation plan, authorities announced on Wednesday, as Kyiv’s forces extend their campaign of long-range strikes that aim to put the Kremlin under pressure.

Ukraine lacks ammunition supplies along the 1,000km front line due to a shortfall in promised Western supplies, which is one of the main factors forcing its army to take a more defensive stance. But at the same time, it is attacking oil facilities deep inside Russia and seeking to unnerve Russia’s border regions.

Some Belgorod schools near the border will close early ahead of school holidays, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov announced, after Ukraine shelling continued to cause deaths and injuries among the local population.

Piotr Korycki picks up a handful of wheat and watches as the yellow grains run through his fingers.

All around him, grain is piled high in a warehouse on his farm north of the Polish capital: hundreds of tons of wheat, rye and corn left over from last year’s harvest that he is unable to sell for a profit.

Russia launched a missile attack on Ukraine’s capital Kyiv this morning injuring eight people and damaging residential buildings and industrial facilities, mayor Vitali Klitschko said.

Mr Klitschko said on the Telegram messaging app that air defence units were repelling the attack. He said missile debris fell in different parts of the city.

“There are already eight injured as the result of the enemy’s attack,” Mr Klitschko said.

Emergency workers rushed to sites in different parts of the capital and were extinguishing several fires, he said.

The International Olympic Committee says Russia has reached a “new low” following “extremely aggressive” comments made towards the ruling body and its president Thomas Bach.

On Tuesday, the IOC ruled that athletes from Russia and Belarus will not be able to participate in the opening ceremony of this summer’s Paris Olympics.

The IOC also criticised Russia’s plan to stage a ‘Summer Friendship Games’ in the cities of Moscow and Ekaterinburg in September, rivalling Paris 2024, and urged sports and governments to boycott the event.

The reaction of Kremlin spokespeople and several Russian political commentators has been denounced by Mr Bach, who said in a press conference call on Wednesday: “There are more quotes coming from Russia which are extremely aggressive.

“Since some of them are very personal, I would like to ask (IOC spokesperson) Mark Adams to answer.”

Mr Adams said: “We have seen some very aggressive statements out of Russia today. One comment goes beyond that.

“Linking the president, his nationality and the Holocaust is unacceptable and reaches a new low.”

Following the military invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russia, as well as Belarus, have been banned from the Olympics but athletes from those countries who have qualified for Paris can compete as neutrals.

“Everybody who is following the rules is welcome in the Olympic movement,” Mr Bach added. “From the moment the Russian Olympic Committee follows the rules, they are welcome, so the ball is in their court at this moment.”