Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital Resumes Services After Devastating Russian Missile Attack

Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv has partially resumed medical services a week after being devastated by a Russian missile attack. Work is continuing to rebuild the medical facility, with heavy equipment being used to clear debris from the hospital grounds. Flowers and stuffed animals were placed at the hospital entrance where it is believed a missile struck.

Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy had announced last week that an equivalent of $9.6 million (€8.82m) would be allocated to rebuild the hospital. The father of one of the patients expressed his dismay, stating, “I don’t know what the rules of war are if they hit a children’s hospital where children are being saved and given life.”

The hospital, recognized as the largest children’s hospital in all of Ukraine, had been partially leveled by a Russian missile, resulting in the tragic loss of 44 lives and leaving numerous children with life-threatening diseases injured. At the time of the attack, the 10-story hospital was caring for 627 patients, as reported by the Ukrainian health minister.

The strike on the hospital received international condemnation as it disrupted open-heart surgery and forced young cancer patients to continue their treatments outdoors. The attack occurred during one of the heaviest bombardments of Kyiv by Russia in nearly four months and was deemed one of the deadliest incidents of the entire war, according to Ukrainian officials.