THIS is the moment a Ukrainian missile struck a cultural centre packed with Russian marines in a deliberate “revenge attack”.

The HIMARS strike reportedly killed at least 25 Putin troops and left 100 wounded in the occupied Donetsk region. 

The dramatic footage highlights a concert marking Russia’s annual Day of Missile Forces and Artillery.

It shows Russian actress and choreographer Polina Menshikh, 40, playing the guitar and singing for the marines as the deadly two-missile strike hits, and the video blacks out. 

She was reported to have been killed in the attack in the village of Kumachovo, some 37 miles from the frontline. 

Russia immediately ordered a news blackout on the troop losses from the US-made HIMARS strike, say reports.

The strike was on Sunday, but footage has only now emerged. 

The Russian Investigative Committee announced a criminal probe into the attack with “killed a civilian” – yet it is clear from Russian sources that Ukrainian claims of a  large toll from the pinpoint strike are correct.

The Ukrainian military described the strike as a “reckoning blow”.

Commander of Ukrainian aerial reconnaissance unit Birds of Magyar, Robert Brovdi said the Kyiv’s forces had attacked the 810th separate brigade of the Russian Marines in “revenge for the 128th Brigade”.

This refers to a November 4 strike by Russia on an awards ceremony near the frontline on Ukraine’s Artillery Forces Day in which at least 20 soldiers from the 128th were killed and many wounded  by a Kh-59 hit.

Read Related Also: The 30 house price hotspots of 2023: East Lothian and Lancashire top this year's list

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky branded it “a tragedy that could have been avoided”, and a criminal investigation was launched.

At least 25 Russian marines were killed and more than 100 were wounded in the Sunday strike, he claimed.  

The losses of the command personnel were classified by a Russian military commission that arrived at the scene, he said.

Obituaries would soon appear in Sevastopol, he said. 

The 810th are based in the city, the main naval port in occupied Crimea. 

The latest strike enraged Russian war bloggers. 

Putin-loyal Telegram Channel Military Informant hit out at the “untaught idiots” amount Russia’s commanders who did not expect the Ukraine’s to seek revenge as its troops marked their Artillery Forces Day. 

“The building where the show event was held was located only 37 miles from the frontline. 

“The result is predictable – the enemy struck with HIMARS, including Russian actress Polina Menshikh, who was performing at that moment, who died.

“Almost two years of war, and the untaught idiots still do not know what to do and what not to do.”

The channel denounced the decision to organise a concert for military personnel so close to the frontline.