At least nine people were killed in Russian attacks across Ukraine on September 19, including a massive drone strike on the western city of Lviv, setting ablaze a warehouse storing humanitarian supplies as U.S President Joe Biden urged world leaders to stand by Ukraine against invading Russia.
One person was also killed in the fire at the industrial storage facility in Lviv, regional Governor Maksim Kozitskiy said.
Denise Brown, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, said the attack violated international humanitarian law that protects workers, facilities, and supplies.
“Attacks impacting humanitarian assets have escalated throughout the year and ultimately impact those who are suffering the horrific consequences of the war,” Brown said.
In other Russian attacks, six people were killed by a guided aerial bomb in Kupyansk, a city in the eastern Kharkiv region.
Regional Governor Oleh Synehubov described the attack as a "military crime against the civilian population of the Kharkiv region.”
An artillery strike in Kherson in the south struck a bus, killing two people, Ukrainian officials said. That strike also torched a warehouse.
Meanwhile, fighting continued in southern and eastern regions of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian military's General Staff said in its regular briefing on September 19 that its forces were conducting offensive operations in areas around Melitopol, in the southeast, and Bakhmut, in the east, in efforts to retake territory and "consolidate new positions."
At the United Nations General Assembly, Biden warned that allowing Ukraine “to be carved up” will mean no nation is secure.
"Russia believes that the world will grow weary and allow it to brutalize Ukraine without consequence," Biden said. "If we allow Ukraine to be carved up, is the independence of any nation secure?"
Biden said the United States and its allies would stand with Ukraine as it fights for its freedom.
"Russia alone bears responsibility for this war," Biden said. "Russia alone has the power to end this war immediately."
