5 killed in Russian strikes on eastern Ukraine’s Avdiivka

KYIV — Five people have been killed and more than a dozen wounded in Russian strikes on a war-scarred town in eastern Ukraine, an official in Kyiv says, nearly one month into Moscow’s invasion.

“In the Donetsk region, Avdiivka was fired on by artillery and aircraft, the city was razed to the ground. Five civilians were killed and 19 were injured,” Ukraine’s ombudswoman, Lyudmyla Denisova, says in a statement.

She said the attack occurred late Monday.

Avdiivka in the east of Ukraine is adjacent to the de facto capital of pro-Moscow separatists, who wrested control of two self-proclaimed republics in 2014.

Ukraine has accused Russian troops of indiscriminately targeting medical facilities, residential areas, and bomb shelters since Moscow sent troops over the borders of its pro-Western neighbor on February 24.