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Aid Agencies' Work In Ukraine Disrupted By Russian Missile Strikes


A firefighter helps his colleague to escape from a crater as they extinguish smoke from a burning car after a Russian attack in Kyiv on October 10.
A firefighter helps his colleague to escape from a crater as they extinguish smoke from a burning car after a Russian attack in Kyiv on October 10.

The work of international aid organizations operating in Ukraine has been disrupted by missile strikes launched by Russia at cities across the country.

The early morning strikes on infrastructure and urban residential areas hit major cities across Ukraine, including Kyiv, killing at least 14 people and injuring 97, according to Ukraine's Interior Ministry late on October 10.

The United Nations' humanitarian office said on October 10 that the wave of attacks "impacted humanitarian operations across Ukraine, particularly hampering the movement of aid workers and delivery of emergency supplies in the east of the country, where people are in desperate need of assistance."

The International Committee of the Red Cross, which has some 700 staffers on the ground in Ukraine, said its teams at 10 locations had suspended operations.

And the Norwegian Refugee Council, which has aid workers in several of the cities targeted by the Russian strikes, said it was halting all operations until it is safe to continue.

"We cannot aid vulnerable communities when our aid workers are hiding from a barrage of bombs and in fear of repeated attacks," said the organization's secretary-general, Jan Egeland.

A spokesperson for the UN refugee agency said its operations were continuing.

Based on reporting by dpa and Reuters

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