Russian military strikes have hit the area surrounding a major television tower in Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, CNN reported. The Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs also confirmed the same on Telegram

As per CNN, the ministry’s statement conveyed, “The channels will not work for a while. The backup broadcasting of some channels will be enabled in the near future”. 

Ukraine’s Ministry of Internal Affairs has also released a statement, CNN reported, saying, “As of 06:00 p.m. 5 people were killed and 5 were injured in the shelling of the Kyiv TV Tower in the Shevchenkivskyi district. The work continues.”

This attack comes as Kyiv’s mayor Vitali Klitschko informed citizens that Russian forces had gathered at the city’s outskirts. A massive 40-mile long military column including tanks and armoured vehicles was earlier seen making its way towards Kyiv, as per CNN based on Maxar Technology’s satellite images. 

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Meanwhile, TASS, the Russian state-run news agency had also reported the nation’s defence ministry issuing a statement expressing the intent to carry out strikes against key targets in Kyiv. These include Ukraine’s State Security Agency and “the 72nd Main Center for Information and Psychological Operations [PSO] in Kyiv”. 

At this time, it remains unclear whether these strikes are a part of the planned targeting or not. 

Kyiv is already on high alert with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stating “Kyiv is special. If we protect Kyiv, we will protect the state. This is the heart of our country, and it must keep beating”, as per CNN. The mayor too has echoed the same sentiment, saying that Russians are aiming to take the heart of Ukraine and those in Kyiv will fight and not give up. 

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In order to better organize against a Russian assault, Zelenskyy appointed General Mykola Zhernov, a military commander, to lead Kyiv’s defences. The president justified his decision in a Telegram address, saying, “I decided to appoint a professional military man as the head of the Kyiv city military administration for the duration of the war. To guarantee the defence of the city, to block the enemy’s intrigues in our capital, so that the people of Kyiv have all that they need”.