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Death toll from Dec. 29 strikes on Kyiv rises to 23 as more bodies pulled from rubble

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Death toll from Dec. 29 strikes on Kyiv rises to 23 as more bodies pulled from rubble
Rescuers continue to work at one of the attack sites in Kyiv, captured by a photo shared by the State Emergency Service on Dec. 31, 2023. (State Emergency Service/Telegram)

At least 23 people were killed by Russia's Dec. 29 mass strike on Kyiv, the State Emergency Service reported on Dec. 31.

"As of 12:30 p.m., in the Shevchenkivskyi district of Kyiv, rescuers retrieved 23 people who died during a Russian missile attack on Dec. 29 from under the rubble. 8 people were saved," the Emergency Service wrote.

The report comes shortly after the local authorities had just revised the death toll to 19, adding that the rescuers were continuing to identify the bodies of the dead.

Earlier on Dec. 29, Russia launched a large-scale drone and missile attack on multiple Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv and Lviv, far from the battlefield, killing over 40 people and wounding over 160 people countrywide.

Kyiv, usually well protected by modern Western air defense systems, suffered its deadliest attack since the beginning of the war.

Citing the National Police, the Emergency Service said that 35 were wounded in the capital.

Of the 158 Russian missiles and drones launched at the country, Ukrainian air defense downed 114, according to the Air Force.

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Asami Terajima

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Asami Terajima is a reporter at the Kyiv Independent covering Ukrainian military issues, front-line developments, and politics. She is the co-author of the weekly War Notes newsletter. She previously worked as a business reporter for the Kyiv Post focusing on international trade, infrastructure, investment, and energy. Originally from Japan, Terajima moved to Ukraine during childhood and completed her bachelor’s degree in Business Administration in the U.S. She is the winner of the Thomson Reuters Foundation's Kurt Schork Award in International Journalism 2023 (Local Reporter category) and the George Weidenfeld Prize, awarded as part of Germany's Axel Springer Prize 2023. She was also featured in the Media Development Foundation’s “25 under 25: Young and Bold” 2023 list of emerging media makers in Ukraine.

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