Russia is escalating its air war on Ukraine as the conflict between the two countries now heads to its 4-1/2-year mark.
In a devastating strike on Ukraine, at least 16 lives were lost and over 130 individuals sustained injuries when Russian drones targeted a shopping center, an incident President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has denounced as a shocking “act of barbarism”.
The city of Kryvyi Rih, which carries special significance as Zelenskyy’s hometown, bore the brunt of this daytime assault, according to regional governor Oleksandr Hanzha. Among the wounded are 22 children, underscoring the tragic impact on the civilian population.
Hanzha reported, “There are 29 people in serious condition, including five children,” offering a grim snapshot of the human toll while sharing a harrowing image of thick black smoke rising from the afflicted industrial structure.
Providing an update on Saturday morning, Hanzha revealed that nine individuals, among them two children, are currently considered missing. Rescuers remain engaged in sifting through the debris of the devastated shopping center in search for survivors.
In condemning the attack, Zelenskyy described it as “absolutely cynical and despicable,” emphasizing that a second drone strike was launched on the shopping center thirty minutes after the initial hit, a move he asserted was a deliberate attempt to harm emergency response teams.
“Attacks like these are nothing less than terrorist acts,” Zelenskky said on Telegram, urging the world to hold Russia to account. “We will definitely respond.”
In a separate attack on Friday, at least four people, including three children, were killed and a woman was wounded after a Russian drone strike in Ukraine’s southern region of Mykolaiv, Ukrainian state media said on Telegram.
Russia is escalating its air war on Ukraine as fighting on the battlefield grinds toward the 4-1/2-year mark. On Thursday, 17 people were killed in a Russian ballistic missile attack on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.
Ukraine has also stepped up its own attacks on Russia, targeting oil facilities and logistics infrastructure to try to undermine Moscow’s ability to wage war.