Ukraine Reports Russia Bombed Apartment Building Coinciding with Putin's Birthday

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused Russia's military of deliberately targeting civilians and bombing residential buildings as a grim gift for Vladimir Putin, who celebrates his 74th birthday on Wednesday.

Ukraine’s president described Russia’s overnight drone and missile strikes, which killed at least 24 people, as “despicable.” “The Russians wanted to strike painfully and demonstratively,” he said.

Video showed a ballistic missile striking a five-storey apartment block in Pryluky, a town in the northern Chernihiv region. The building collapsed, entombing those inside. Eighteen people died, including four children, officials reported.

Zelenskyy identified the victims as Oleksandr, Kyrylo, Serhii, who was one year old, and eight-year-old Maksym. He noted that five children were among approximately 50 people injured. Rescuers continued to search through the rubble, with several residents still unaccounted for, he added.

“Today, on Putin’s birthday, the Russian army ‘presented’ him with the destruction of a residential block in Pryluky,” Zelenskyy wrote on social media. “The Russians know very well that they are striking ordinary cities, ordinary life. It is an absolutely deliberate choice of terror.”

He acknowledged Ukraine's challenges in intercepting enemy ballistic missiles and appealed to allies for US-manufactured Patriot interceptors. “Air defense packages for us right now are a vital necessity,” he said.

The bombardment involved 70 ballistic missiles and 46 jet-powered drones, which have been terrorizing Ukrainians daily. Ukraine’s air force reported downing over 80% of the fast-moving drones—an improvement from the previous average of 50% to 60%.

Eleven regions were targeted. Two people were killed in Kyiv, with deadly strikes also in Kremenchuk and Oleksandriia, where four civilians died. Extensive damage was reported in Dnipro.

Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, said Russian generals gave Putin his favorite birthday present: “war crimes.” Moscow’s strategy of bombarding the population to force capitulation would not succeed, he stated.

“The Ukrainian people are not going to give up, because it’s about Ukraine’s survival as a nation and as a state,” he said. The “ultimate” present would be a dock in The Hague, home to the international criminal court, where the Russian president would stand trial, Sybiha said.

A resident in Kremenchuk recounted the early Wednesday attack: “We were making tea in the morning. My husband was getting ready for work. And that was it. I found myself on the floor. What can I say? It was very scary.”

In Dnipro, residents reported a blast wave affecting 16 buildings, blowing out doors and windows. One woman, Iryna, said her auto parts workshop was hit for the sixth time. The ceiling collapsed during Wednesday’s strike, damaging toilets, sinks, and equipment.

“The explosion happened around three in the morning. We were sleeping at home. Everyone was scared, probably the whole city heard it. We will restore the shop and continue to work,” she told the Suspline channel.

Zelenskyy stated Ukraine had conducted long-range strikes on economic and military sites in Russia, including oil complexes and a training ground in the Perm, Samara, and Astrakhan regions. “These are justified Ukrainian responses to all Russian attacks on our people,” he said.

The president posted dramatic video of a burning oil tanker near the southern resort city of Sochi. Russian officials said naval drones had hit the Liberian-flagged ship, with crude oil burning on the Black Sea. Its Indian crew of 23 was rescued, they said.

Both sides have heavily targeted commercial shipping around the Black Sea since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. Recently, Russia has targeted vessels carrying Ukrainian grain, paralyzing maritime traffic from Ukraine’s southern ports, including Odesa.