UPDATED: 1 killed, at least 5 injured in Russian attacks on Sumy Oblast

Editor's note: This is a developing story and it is being updated.

A woman was killed and at least five more people were injured in Russian air strikes on Sumy Oblast on April 8, Ukrainian authorities reported.

Settlements in Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy Oblast suffer from almost daily Russian attacks due to their proximity to the border with Russia. Russian strikes against Sumy Oblast have become increasingly destructive over the past month, leading to multiple civilian casualties.

Russia hit a civilian infrastructure facility in Sumy, the regional capital, at around 3:15 p.m. local time, the Prosecutor General's Office reported, adding that three civilians were injured.

Around 15 minutes after the Sumy attack, Russian troops reportedly struck the center of Bilopillia with guided aerial bombs, killing a woman. According to the Prosecutor General's Office, two people suffered injuries, but the Sumy Oblast Military Administration reported on three wounded residents.

The town council, stores, and vehicles were damaged in the attack, the regional administration added.

"Today in Bilopillia, Russian terrorists committed another crime against civilians, hitting civilian infrastructure. Thanks to the fact that the air raid alarm sounded in time and people went down to the shelter, it was possible to avoid more victims," said Volodymyr Artiukh, the head of the regional administration.

The town of Bilopillia, with a pre-war population of about 15,600 residents, lies just eight kilometers south of the Ukraine-Russia border.

Amid intensified attacks, Ukrainian authorities ordered the evacuation of children from 52 settlements in Sumy Oblast on April 5.

Why is Russia intensifying attacks on Ukraine’s Sumy Oblast?

Russian attacks on Ukraine’s northern Sumy Oblast have left some villages resembling the ruins of Bakhmut and Marinka, officials have said, as Moscow’s forces continue to escalate aerial bombardments against homes and civilian infrastructure in the area. In the latest strikes, one person was killed…

The Kyiv IndependentChris York