JAKARTA - Four rockets hit the western Ukrainian city of Lviv on Saturday, local officials said, in the most significant attack on the city since the start of the war with Russia.
Lviv, just 60 kilometers (40 miles) from the Polish border, has so far escaped heavy bombardment and fighting, which has devastated several Ukrainian cities closer to Russia, since Moscow launched its invasion on February 24.
Governor Maksym Kozytskyy said five people were injured after two rockets hit a fuel depot, while two others later hit a military factory. Earlier, he reported a powerful explosion in the eastern outskirts of Lviv from the attack.
"Stay in the shelter! Don't go out into the street!" he warned after the first attack.
The rockets fell as US President Joseph Biden, speaking in Warsaw during a visit to Poland, condemned Russia's aggression and assured Ukraine of the United States' unwavering support.
"With today's blow, the aggressor sends greetings to President Biden, who is in Poland," Lviv mayor Andriy Sadoviy said in a televised briefing, saying Russia had fired rockets from Sevastopol in Crimea it annexed in 2014.
There was no immediate comment on the Lviv attack from Russian authorities, who described the invasion as a "special military operation" and aimed at the demilitarization of Ukraine.
The city government did not give the exact location of the attacks but said they damaged critical infrastructure, set a fuel depot on fire, and blew up the windows of a school building. No residential buildings were affected, according to the mayor.
Reuters witnesses in central Lviv saw thick black smoke rising from the northeast side of the city and a strong smell of burning filled the air.
People flocked to the street to watch the puff of smoke rise behind the apartment block. Most of the residents seemed to stay indoors, peeking out from behind the curtains as others rushed down the street carrying their bags.
Separately, Ukraine's Presidential Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak said the attack showed Russia wanted to intimidate Ukraine and foreign diplomats, who have moved their embassy to Lviv for relative security compared to the capital, Kyiv.
"Ukraine should not be intimidated by such Russian crimes, and I want to say to my Western partners once again, close the skies, show strength," he wrote on Telegram.
This refers to Ukraine's repeated requests for a no-fly zone, which has been ruled out by NATO.
It is known, since Russia began its invasion last February 24, foreign countries have moved their embassies from Kyiv affected by the attack to Lviv which is relatively safer, as well as facilitating the evacuation of their citizens.
VOIR éGALEMENT:
In this city, among others, there are embassies of the US, France, Brazil, the Netherlands, including Indonesia, which recently evacuated Indonesian citizens from Ukraine via Lviv to Poland.
"The Kyiv Embassy is currently operating from Lviv," said the Director of PWNI at the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Judha Nugraha some time ago.
Lviv had a pre-war population of around 717,000, but for thousands of families fleeing the worst fighting in eastern, southern, and central Ukraine, it has become a haven at home or a transit hub for people leaving the country.
Just two weeks ago, a barrage of Russian missiles hit a large Ukrainian base just 25 km (15 miles) from the border with Poland.
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