Ukraine has confirmed that the death toll from a Russian missile strike on the western city of Ternopil has risen to at least 31, after rescue teams pulled more bodies from the rubble more than two days after the attack.
The strike, which hit an apartment block earlier this week, tore off the upper floors of the building and buried dozens of residents beneath tons of debris. Search and rescue operations have continued around the clock, with several people still unaccounted for.
The attack is one of the deadliest to hit Ukraine this year and among the worst assaults on western regions since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
On Friday, Ukraine’s national police reported that rescuers had “recovered the bodies of three more people from the rubble of the destroyed building: a woman and two children.” Authorities said that six of the 31 confirmed dead are children.
At least 94 others were injured in the blast, including 18 children, according to officials.
“The search for people who are still missing continues,” the police said, noting that emergency services had earlier reported more than a dozen individuals yet to be located as of Thursday.
Rescue workers say recovery efforts are expected to continue, as hopes fade for survivors still trapped under the ruins.
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