At least 18 people have died in a helicopter crash near a nursery in Ukraine, including top ministry officials and three children.
Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi, his deputy Yevhen Yenin, and State Secretary of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Yurii Lubkovych were among those killed, according to Ihor Klymenko, chief of Ukraine's National Police.
Nine of those killed were on board the emergency services helicopter which crashed in Brovary, an eastern suburb of the capital, Mr Klymenko said.
Kyiv Regional Governor Oleksii Kuleba said three children were also killed. Earlier, officials and media reports said the helicopter crashed near a kindergarten.
Mr Monastyrskyi is the most senior Ukrainian official to have died since the start of the war with Russia almost 11 months ago.
There was no immediate word on whether the crash was an accident or a result of the war with Russia. No fighting has been reported recently in the Kyiv area.
A total of 29 people were injured, including 15 children, the regional governor said.
The Kyiv Post reported: “The leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs died as a result of the helicopter crash in Brovary: the minister, the first deputy minister and the state secretary.”
Ukraine first lady Olena Zelenska daubed teary eyes and pinched her nose in emotion minutes before attending a World Economic Forum session in Davos, Switzerland.
Forum President Borge Brende requested 15 seconds of silence after opening the session to honor the Ukrainian officials killed in the crash.
Paying tribute to Mr Monastyrskyi, the UK Home Secretary said Ukraine lost a "leading light" in its resistance against Vladimir Putin's invasion.
Suella Braverman said: "This is truly heart-breaking. Interior minister Denys Monastyrsky was a leading light in supporting the Ukrainian people during Putin's illegal invasion and when we spoke in October I was struck by his determination, optimism and patriotism.
"My thoughts go out to all those who have died in this horrible tragedy and their families. The UK will always stand with our Ukrainian friends."
The interior minister was a "great friend of the EU", according to Charles Michel, the president of the European Council.
In a tweet, he added that the EU joins Ukraine "in grief following the tragic helicopter accident in Brovary" in a tweet Wednesday.
"Minister Denys Monastyrsky was a great friend of the EU. We share our deepest condolences with the families of the victims, President @ZelenskyyUa, PM @Denys_Shmyhal and the people of #Ukraine," Michel’s tweet said.
Anton Gerashchenko, an interior ministry adviser, confirmed the deaths and suggested sabotage as a possible cause.
He said: "My friends, statesmen of Ukraine - Minister of Internal Affairs Denis Monastyrsky, Zhenya Yenin [Yevhen Yenin] and Yura Lubkovich died in a helicopter crash of the State Emergency Service in Brovary.
"Everyone on board the helicopter also died. The causes of the tragedy are being established by investigators.
"Whether it was sabotage, a technical malfunction, a violation of flight safety rules, we will soon find out.
"My deepest condolences to the families and friends of Denis, Yevhen and all the families of those killed in this terrible disaster.
"Denis, Zhenya, Yura, everyone who was on board the helicopter were patriots of Ukraine, each defended and strengthened Ukraine in their place. We will always remember you.
"Your families will always be under the protection of friends and the state. Eternal memory to you, Friends!"
A new video showed the doomed helicopter flying low over trees but apparently without difficulty in “the last seconds” before it crashed.
An eyewitness said: “The helicopter made three circles over Fora [a chain of supermarkets in Ukraine], flew into the centre, started descending sharply, hit it, caught fire and that was it.”
Reports say a preliminary cause is “pilot error” but a full probe is underway.
Footage circulating online earlier captured a large blaze surrounding the site, while pictures showed the helicopter wreckage.
Kyiv region governor Oleksiy Kuleba earlier said: "At the time of the tragedy, children and staff of the institution were in the kindergarten.
"Everyone has now been evacuated. There are casualties."
A picture of the kindergarten after the crash shows how it was severely decimated in the tragedy.
“It is a miracle so many children survived,” said one commenter.
Deputy head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, confirmed that a helicopter crashed near a kindergarten in the region.
The helicopter - said to be a Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma - was reportedly flying in fog when it crashed.
The aircraft belonged to Ukraine’s emergencies ministry, and the reason for the crash was not immediately clear.
Later reports said kindergarten children had suffered shrapnel wounds and burns.
The crash comes amid claims from a Russian official that Vladimir Putin will make a "very important" announcement on the war in Ukraine today.
The Russian president may make a statement during a series of events to mark 80 years since the siege of Leningrad - now St Petersburg - in World War 2, according to Vladimir Rogov.
Rogov, who was appointed by Russia to run the occupied Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, claimed Putin will make an important speech in St Petersburg tomorrow.
The pro-Putin official made the announcement on his Telegram channel, but there has been no official confirmation of the president's speech from the Kremlin yet.
Nearly 11 months after the Russian president ordered his forces to invade Ukraine, regional authorities are reportedly preparing for Putin's visit.
It comes after Russia sent a chilling warning saying that UK tanks being sent to Ukraine will "burn" on the battlefield.
"The special military operation will continue. These tanks are burning and will burn," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
The remarks followed the news that the British government would be sending a squadron of Challenger 2 tanks, in a move which made it the first Western power to supply Ukraine with main battle tanks.
Mr Peskov said: "They [UK] are using this country [Ukraine] as a tool to achieve their anti-Russian goals. These tanks are burning and will burn just like the rest."
In unfounded claims, he said the supply of tanks from "countries like Britain and Poland" would not impact the situation on the ground and would only bring "more troubles" to Ukraine.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said the tanks were "the most significant package of combat to date to accelerate Ukrainian success."
