On Friday, Russian drones struck a busy shopping centre in Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, resulting in the deaths of at least 14 people and wounding more than 120, according to Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the Kryvyi Rih Defence Council. The attack, which began around 8pm local time (17:00 GMT), triggered a fire at the city’s largest shopping complex, sparking a significant incident. The death toll as of 17:00 GMT was 14, with 121 injured, including 22 children. Vilkul stated that 29 of those injured were in critical condition. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the attack as ‘cynical and despicable’, urging the world to hold Russia accountable for the violence. He also claimed that a second Russian drone struck the shopping centre 30 minutes after the first, a deliberate attempt to target emergency services. ‘Attacks like these are nothing less than terrorist acts,’ Zelenskyy said on Telegram, stressing the need for international pressure on Russia. The attack has drawn condemnation from several nations, including the United States, which has stated that the incident is a ‘blatant act of terror’ and has pledged to respond with ‘real pressure on the aggressor.’ Videos on social media showed rescue workers rushing to help the wounded outside, as smoke billowed from the building. Meanwhile, a separate Russian strike in the Mykolaiv region killed four people, including three children, reported by Interior Minister Ivan Vyhivskyi. Al Jazeera’s Audrey Macalpine, reporting from Kyiv, described the incident as a ‘blatant act of terror’ and suggested that the mall might have been deliberately targeted, although the exact nature of the attack remains unclear. Macalpine noted that Ukraine has been increasing its attacks in recent weeks, focusing on Russian warehouses linked to Wildberries, a major online retailer. The attack on Kryvyi Rih’s second-largest mall, a significant commercial hub, has been part of a pattern of Russian targeting of Ukrainian cities, with Ukraine also intensifying its own attacks on Russian logistics infrastructure to disrupt Moscow’s war effort. The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine reported that at least 437 civilians were killed and another 2,610 injured in Russian attacks in July, representing the highest monthly civilian death toll since May 2022. The coalition of countries allied with Ukraine, including the United States, will meet on Monday to reaffirm support for Kyiv and to assess the situation. The conflict in Ukraine has already resulted in significant civilian casualties and damage to infrastructure, with Russia intensifying its bombardments of Ukrainian cities and Ukraine stepping up its own attacks on Russia.”
Source: Al Jazeera
