At least 35 people were killed and 134 others were injured after a Russian rocket attack last night on a military center in western Ukraine, near the border with Poland, where there were foreign instructors.

Maksym Kozytskyi, head of the state administration in the Ukrainian city of Lviv, a city close to the attack, confirmed the figures, raising the previous report that indicated nine deaths and 57 wounded.

The political official explained that “the Lviv region was hit by a rocket attack on the International Center for Peacekeeping and Security, which is located in the village, Starychi, in the Yavoriv district.”

At least two loud explosions were reported at the base, which is just 19 kilometers from the border with Poland, a NATO member country.

According to preliminary data, Russian troops fired “more than 30 cruise missiles, air-to-surface missiles, most of which were shot down, while the air defense system was working,” Kozytskyi added. Emergency services are trying to extinguish the fire on the spot.

The attack was confirmed by Ukraine’s Defense Minister, Oleksii Reznikov, who specified that there were workers from other countries at the scene.

“Foreign instructors work here. Information about the victims is being clarified. This is a new terrorist attack against peace and security near the border between the European Union and NATO. Action must be taken to stop this,” he added.

Many Ukrainians have fled to the relative safety of Lviv since the Russian invasion of their country began in February. A short distance from Poland, the city is also a transit hub for those leaving Ukraine.

The city of Lviv, where some Western countries moved their embassies in the days before the Russian invasion, has not been hit, although air alarms were sounded between messages to the population to seek refuge.

In any case, today’s attack is the first to take place in the region since the start of the war. A point, so close to the territory that integrates NATO had never been attacked.

The Russian Army, which began the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, had concentrated its objectives in the east and south of the country as well as around the city of Kyiv.

For several days, the attacks have also affected areas in the west of the country, near the borders with Poland and Moldova, the points most used by Ukrainians who want to seek refuge in the European Union.

On the other hand, the mayor of Ivano-Frankvisk, in western Ukraine, indicated that the city’s airport was the target of an attack. “According to preliminary information, the explosions this morning (Sunday) were from an attack on the airport, Mayor Ruslan Martsinkiv said on Facebook.