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Ukraine’s interior minister Denys Monastyrskyi and four children are among at least 17 people dead after a helicopter crashed while heading towards the northeastern city of Kharkiv, officials say.
President Volodymyr Zelensky described the crash as a “terrible tragedy” and said that it had been a “black morning”. Earlier, officials said the death toll could be as high as 18 people, with Mr Zelensky saying the number of dead was still being determined.
“The pain is unspeakable,” Mr Zelensky said, offering his condolences to the victims’ friends and families. The helicopter went down beside a nursery in Brovary, a suburb east of Kyiv. Mr Monastyrskyi, responsible for the police and security inside Ukraine, would be the most senior Ukrainian official to die since the war began.
Nine of those killed were onboard the emergency services helicopter, according to national police chief Ihor Klymenko. The nine included two other senior ministry officials. The deputy head of Ukraine's presidential office, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, said the minister had been en route to a war "hot spot". That was confirmed to be Kharkiv by the regional police chief for the area, Volodymyr Tymoshko.
Ukraine's State Emergency Service have said that 25 people have been injured, including 11 children.
