As the Eurovision song contest began in the United Kingdom late Saturday, Russian missiles struck Ternopil, a western Ukrainian city home to the electro-pop band Tvorchi, this year’s Ukrainian contestants.
According to local authorities, who posted on Telegram, the strike damaged commercial enterprises and a religious institution, hurting two persons.
Since late October, Russia has launched hundreds of rocket and missile attacks against Ukrainian targets.
Britain’s envoy to Kyiv, Melinda Simmons, hailed Tvorchi for their Eurovision 2023 entry.
“The staging was fantastic. “It’s also poignant because their university town of Ternopil was hit by Russian missiles this evening,” she tweeted.
Tvorchi stated this week that they hoped to bring attention to their country’s quest for freedom.
Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra won the contest last year, riding a tsunami of enthusiasm from around Europe, but Ukraine was unable to host Eurovision this year due to Russia’s invasion.
