Two people, including a three-year-old child, have been killed and around 28 others injured in a Russian strike on Kharkiv, Ukrainian officials have said, Report informs via BBC.
A multi-story residential apartment block was almost completely destroyed in the dual missile attack on Friday afternoon, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called "heinous".
Russia's Defense Ministry denied reports of an attack, suggesting the blast had been caused by Ukrainian ammunition detonating.
The strike comes ahead of crunch talks on a US-brokered peace plan in Kyiv on Saturday.
Officials in Kharkiv said the bodies of a woman and a three-year-old child were found in the rubble, with preliminary information suggesting the pair may have been a mother and son.
"Unfortunately, this is how the Russians treat life and people – they continue killing, despite all efforts by the world, and especially by the United States, in the diplomatic process," Zelenskyy wrote on X.
Of the 28 injured, which included a six-month-old baby, 16 have been taken to hospital.
A search and rescue operation is ongoing, with more than 80 volunteers working at the scene, according to regional governor Oleh Syniehubov.