Ukrainian prosecutors said the death toll is still rising on Sunday morning after two guided bombs hit the Epicentr DIY hypermarket on Saturday afternoon, Independent repoprted.

The strikes caused a massive fire which sent a column of thick, black smoke billowing hundreds of metres into the air.

Forty-three people were injured, the local prosecutors’ office said, adding that ten of the twelve dead had still not been identified.

Andriy Kudinov, director of the suburban shopping centre, told local media the hardware store was full of shoppers buying items for their summer cottages when the attack happened, while Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said about 120 people had been in the store when the bombs struck.

It took 16 hours to fully extinguish the fire at the centre, which had raged over an area of 13,000 square metres (15,548 square yards), Interior Minister Klymenko said.

The past week has seen an uptick in strikes on the city after Russian troops stormed across the border, opening a new front north of the city.

MNA