Ukraine War: 21 Killed in Russian Shelling of Merefa Town
NEW DELHI, March 17: At least 21 people were killed and over 110 injured on Thursday when Russian forces shelled a town in eastern Ukraine, local prosecutors said.
He said artillery fire early Thursday hit a school and a cultural centre in the town of Merefa outside the city of Kharkiv. Of the wounded, 10 people are in serious condition, he added.
A photo accompanying the prosecutors’ statement showed a building of several storeys that was destroyed in the middle with windows blown out and emergency workers combing through the wreckage. Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city and some 30 kilometres north of Merefa, has been the scene of intense Russian air strikes in recent weeks and has been severely damaged.
Meanwhile, Britain said it would deploy its latest medium-range missile defence system in Poland. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace announced in Warsaw that the Sky Sabre system would help Poland defend its airspace from Russian weapons. Poland, which borders Ukraine, risks becoming a future target of Russian attacks.
“As a NATO ally and a very old ally, Britain stands by Poland as Poland carries much of the burden of the consequences of this war,” Wallace said after a meeting with Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak. “We stand alongside Poland and protecting their air base from any further aggression by Russia”, Wallace added.
Under the new agreement, Britain will help Poland develop the same missile defence system.
(Manas Dasgupta)
