Russian attack kills 5 in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia

A Russian attack in Ukraine's southeastern Zaporizhzhia killed five people and wounded 20, regional authorities said Tuesday, as explosions rang out in Kyiv during what officials called a ballistic missile strike.

Russia has been increasingly deploying long-range missiles against Ukrainian cities in recent weeks, as Kyiv warns Moscow is bolstering its more than four-year war effort with further North Korean support.

"Five people killed, a further 20 wounded: sadly, the number of casualties continues to rise following the enemy attack on Zaporizhzhia," Ivan Fedorov, head of the regional military administration, said on Telegram.

AFP journalists in Kyiv heard a series of loud explosions shortly after midnight (2100 GMT) after authorities warned of approaching missiles.

Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on social media that the capital was "under ballistic missile attack".

He said emergency services had been sent to Shevchenkivsky district, while city authorities said at least one person had been wounded.

Air raid sirens had begun to sound shortly before the blasts were heard.

In Zaporizhzhia, Fedorov said earlier that Russian forces had struck industrial facilities and infrastructure.

"The Russians attacked industrial facilities and infrastructure," he said on Telegram. "A garage cooperative and residential buildings were damaged."

President Volodymyr Zelensky had said earlier that Russia was preparing to deploy more North Korean troops and had received new ballistic missiles from Pyongyang.

Moscow has stepped up ballistic missile strikes in recent weeks, which only certain air defence systems, including US Patriots, are capable of intercepting.

A shortage of PAC-3 interceptor missiles has worsened since the war launched by the United States and Israel against Iran in February.

At the same time, Ukraine has been increasing its strikes against Russian cities far from the border.