Russian attacks on a Sumy medical centre leaves 8 dead

Eight people have died after Russian forces hit a medical centre in Sumy in northeastern Ukraine this morning, and then struck again as the building was being evacuated, Ukrainian officials said.

Ukrainian prosecutors said that at the time of the attacks, 86 patients and 38 staff members were in the hospital.

"The first attack killed one person and damaged the ceilings of several floors of the hospital," Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on Telegram.

As people were being evacuated, the Russians struck again, killing a further five people, he said.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky later said eight people were killed and 11 injured.

"Everyone in the world who talks about this war should pay attention to where Russia is hitting. They are fighting hospitals, civilian objects, and people's lives," he said on Telegram.

"Only force can force Russia to peace. Peace through force is the only right way."

Mr Klymenko did not specify what weapons were used in the attacks but the regional administration and air forces said the strike was carried out by drones.

Attacks on Sumy city and the Sumy region have become much more frequent since Ukrainian forces launched an operation in Russia's Kursk region in August, and captured dozens of settlements.

Sumy city is located just 32km from the Russian border and Russian forces have been attacking the region and the city with drones and guided bombs.

Ukrainian air forces said they had shot down 69 of 73 drones during an overnight Russian attack that included two ballistic and two cruise missiles.

About 15 Russian attack drones were destroyed by air defences in the capital Kyiv and on its outskirts, the military administration there said

Meanwhile Russia said that the death toll from a blast at a service station in the North Caucasus republic of Dagestan a day earlier had risen to 13.

The emergency services ministry said on Telegram that rescuers had pulled three bodies from the rubble this morning after finding 10 bodies yesterday, including those of two children.

The ministry put the number of injured at 23, posting a video of firefighters and rescuers still working in the still-smouldering ruins.

Russia's Investigative Committee said it had opened a probe into the provision of dangerous services causing multiple deaths, a crime punishable by up to a decade in prison.

The investigators said that two blasts were followed by a fire at the service station in the village of Novy Khushet, but no traces of explosives have been found.

The emergencies ministry said the fire raged over a large area and destroyed the building.

In August last year, an explosion followed by a fire at a service station in a suburb of Dagestan's capital Makhachkala killed 37 people and injured 119.

Such accidents are frequent in Russia due to violations of safety standards and ageing facilities.