First direct attack on Kiiwu SBU building since the outbreak of war

First direct attack on Kiiwu SBU building since the outbreak of war

(Istanbul = Yonhap News) Correspondent Kim Dong-ho = Ukrainian daily Kiiu Independent reported on the 4th (local time) that Russia carried out an airstrike on the headquarters of the State Security Service (SBU), an intelligence agency, in the Ukrainian capital Kiiu.

According to authorities, an air raid warning siren sounded in downtown Kiiu around 3 p.m. that day, and an explosion occurred in the city center about 30 minutes later, injuring at least 12 people. Chiiu Mayor Vitali Klitschko said only that non-residential buildings had suffered damage.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a statement that "Russian drones attacked the SBU headquarters opposite Hagia Sophia" and that the director's office was the target.

This is the first time that the SBU building in Kiev has been directly attacked since war broke out with Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. On March 18, the remains of a Russian military drone shot down in Lviv, western Ukraine, fell on the grounds of the SBU regional office.

President Zelensky emphasized that he has instructed Acting SBU Director Oleksandr Poklad to "provide an appropriate and practical response to Russia and retaliate commensurate with this attack as soon as preparations are completed."

In an additional statement, President Zelensky said that the retaliatory strike point has been confirmed and that "we will carefully choose the timing to achieve a clear result."