Russian missile hits Ukrainian president’s hometown as city mourns deaths from previous attack

jack colman3 weeks ago

54 2 minutes read

Russian missile hits Ukrainian president’s hometown as city mourns deaths from previous attack

kyiv, Ukraine (AP) — A Russian missile crashed into the hometown of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday, local authorities said, as Kryvyi Rih observed an official day of mourning for a attack the day before who killed four civilians in a hotel.

The latest attack on the city hit civilian infrastructure, injuring eight people, local administration head Oleksandr Vilkul said on social media.

Tuesday’s attack, which also wounded five people, was part of a series of dozens of missile and drone strikes launched by Russia across Ukraine for a second consecutive day.

“When Kryvyi Rih is in mourning, the enemy attacks again. And once again it targets civilians,” the head of the region, Serhii Lysak, said on Wednesday.

Russia stepped up its airstrikes on Ukraine on Monday, firing more than 100 missiles and a similar number of drones into its territorial waters. the biggest attack in weeks.

The intensified campaign coincided with what could prove to be a decisive period of the warwhich Russia launched on February 24, 2022.

Russian forces have been advancing deeper and deeper into the partially occupied Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine, the complete conquest of which is one of the Kremlin’s main ambitions. approaching Pokrovska key logistics hub for Ukrainian defense in the region.

At the same time, Ukraine sent its forces into Kursk region in Russia In recent weeks, the most significant offensive on Russian soil since World War II has been launched by Russian forces with the aim of forcing Russia to withdraw its troops from the Donetsk front.

Rescuers found one last body under the rubble at the Kryvyi Rih hotel on Wednesday. The rescue operation has now ended.

Meanwhile, Ukraine claimed its air defenses had destroyed a Russian Su-25 fighter jet in the Donetsk region.

Ukraine also continued its long-range drone attacks on Russia’s rear logistics areas.

A Ukrainian security official told The Associated Press that an operation by the country’s military intelligence service, known as GUR, struck oil depots in Russia’s Rostov and Kirov regions on Wednesday. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the strikes, did not provide further details. It was believed to be the first known Ukrainian attack on the Kirov region, located about 600 miles (950 kilometers) northeast of the Ukrainian border.

Kirov Governor Alexander Sokolov said three Ukrainian drones fell near an oil depot in the region but did not damage it.