Monday, ukrainian president volodymyr zelensky declared a day of national mourning following a helicopter crash near a nursery in brovary, outside kyiv. 14 people died in the crash, including interior minister denys monastyrsky, his 42-year-old political adviser son andrei monastyrsky, a child, and other key officials such as first deputy minister yevhen yenin and state secretary yuriy lubkovych. nato’s head jens stoltenberg said ukraine could expect to receive more support, heavier weapons, and more modern weapons, while the uk has pledged to send tanks to kyiv and germany has reportedly been unwilling to send leopard tanks unless the us commits to providing its own abrams battle tanks.
Crash took place a few days after an attack on a block of flats in the city of dnipro, which killed 45 people, including 6 children. witnesses reported that the pilot had attempted to avoid high-rise buildings, however, the fog and lack of electricity had hindered visibility. panic ensued as emergency services and local citizens worked together to evacuate the children from the burning nursery building, with one local resident named dmytro recounting jumping the fence to help get the children out, one of which had been so badly injured that her father did not recognise her.
Sbu state security service is considering several possible causes for the crash, including sabotage, a technical malfunction or breach of flight rules. key officials in ukraine are often flown by helicopter at tree-level to avoid detection. us president joe biden labelled the crash a “heartbreaking tragedy”. monastyrsky had been providing updates on casualties caused by russian missile strikes since ukraine was invaded in february 2022.
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