At least 10 dead in Kherson bombing, fueling anger over Christmas strikes

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for vigilance after the army noted the presence of Russian ships carrying cruise missiles in the Black Sea.< /p>

Bombing in the recently recaptured Ukrainian city of Kherson killed at least 10 people on Saturday morning, hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that another wave of Russian strikes could spoil the Christmas holidays.

"As the holiday season approaches, Russian terrorists may become active again," Zelensky said in his evening speech. "Therefore, please heed the air raid signals, help each other and always take care of each other."

His comments came after the Ukrainian military warned on Friday that Russian ships carrying cruise missiles had entered the Black Sea for the first time since December 16, when Moscow fired a barrage of missiles across Ukraine.

The streets of Kherson were bustling on Saturday morning when Russian forces shelled the city center, according to Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the president's office.

A commercial area and residential buildings — “the places where the most people are” — were hit, Yaroslav Yanushevych, the head of the Kherson military administration, said in a statement. In addition to the 10 people killed , 55 people were injured in the attack - 18 of whom were nt in serious condition, he later told Ukrainian television, according to news outlet Ukrainska Pravda. Two of the injured were volunteers distributing food aid when the shells fell, according to Matthew Hollingworth, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine.

Footage posted by Mr Zelensky to his Telegram account from the aftermath of the attack showed several people and blood in the street, as well as burning cars. He said they showed "the real life of Ukraine and Ukrainians".

"In the morning, Saturday, Christmas Eve, in the central part of the city," Mr. Zelensky wrote. "These are not military installations. This is not war by defined rules. This is terror, this is killing for intimidation and pleasure. »

Ukraine celebrates Christmas as a national holiday on December 25 — in accordance with the Western calendar — as well as on January 7, for churches observing the Eastern Orthodox religious holiday.< /p>

Saturday's attack was just the latest in Kherson, which has been battered by Russian shelling since Ukrainian forces retook the city last month. , five people in the area were killed and 17 others injured, Tymoshenko said in an update ahead of the latest bombardment.

The bombardment ment of Christmas Eve, though - exactly 10 months after Russia's February 24 invasion of Ukraine - caused an outpouring of anger.

"As families in Europe, North America and beyond prepare festive dinners, spare a thought for Ukraine," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba wrote on Twitter, along with images consequences.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said the 'barbaric' bombings were Russia's 'revenge' on the people of Kherson who had resisted the occupation, while Bridget Brink, the US ambassador to Ukraine, condemned the "brutal" strike on a city whose citizens had "already suffered...