Kiev, Europe Brief News – At least 71 children died in Ukraine since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a war on February 24, a Ukrainian parliament official said on Thursday.
“From the start of the Russian invasion and up to 11:00 am (0900 GMT) on March 10, 71 children have been killed and more than 100 wounded,” Lyudmyla Denisova, parliament’s point person on human rights, wrote in a Telegram message.
Russia carried out an air strike on a children’s hospital in Mariupol during the supposed ceasefire, according to Ukrainian authorities. Two adults and a child died and 17 staff wounded in the attack, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Zelensky accused Russia of a “war crime” over the attack. The US condemned it as “barbaric” and Britain called it “depraved.”
The IAEA said it has not seen any “critical impact on safety” due to the loss of power at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. France is helping the IAEA assess the situation at the site.
The UN said the number of refugees fleeing Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion surged past 2.2 million.
Half the population of Kyiv has fled since the Russian invasion began, its mayor Vitali Klitschko said Thursday. This was due to Moscow’s forces press ever closer to the Ukrainian capital.
Failed Negotiations
Russia and Ukraine on Thursday failed to find a breakthrough on a ceasefire and other humanitarian issues at the first high-level talks between the two sides since Moscow’s invasion.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba met in the Turkish city of Antalya on Thursday. It was the first high-level meeting between the two sides since the Russian invasion began on February 24.
“We also talked on the ceasefire but no progress accomplished on that,” Kuleba told reporters after the meeting. He described it as “difficult”.
