Smoke rises from a destroyed building at the site of a Russian military strike in Vinnytsia, Ukraine, July 14. (State Emergency Service of Ukraine/Reuters)
At least 23 people have been killed in an attack on the central Ukrainian city of Vinistia, according to Ukrainian National Police Chief Igor Klymenko.
The death toll includes three children, and dozens of people are still missing, according to Ukraine’s State Emergency Service (SES).
A further 64 people, including four children, have been hospitalized – 34 of them in a serious condition and five in a critical condition, the SES said, adding that it was continuing to search for 42 people who were missing.
Klimenko said only six of the bodies have been identified so far and DNA tests may be needed to identify others.
More than 50 buildings and more than 40 cars were damaged by the strikes, Klimenko added.
The attack was carried out with Russian Kalibr cruise missiles fired from submarines stationed in the Black Sea, according to Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the Ukrainian president’s office.
The enemy continues to keep ready 32 Kalibr cruise missiles on three surface ships and two submarines, and also has two large amphibious ships” in the Black Sea, reported the operational command “South” of the Ukrainian armed forces. Monday
Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister, described the missile attack as “terrorism”.
“It has already been confirmed that 20 civilians have died following a Russian missile attack on Vinnytsia. Three children, including a toddler, pictured. This is terrorism,” Kuleba tweeted.
“Deliberate killing of civilians to instill fear. Russia is a terrorist state and must be legally recognized as such,” he added.
More reaction: UN Secretary-General says horrified by rocket attack in Vinnytsia.
“The Secretary-General condemns any attack on civilians or civilian infrastructure and reiterates his call for accountability for such violations,” said a spokesman for Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
In a joint statement, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and EU crisis management commissioner Janez Lenarcic condemned the strike.
“We have both witnessed the horrific destruction that Russia has inflicted on Ukraine and its people with our own eyes. Civilians continue to pay a high price in this war, due to Russia’s fundamental disregard for international humanitarian law, facing death, violence, including sexual violence, forced deportations and extermination,” they said.
There can be no impunity for these acts and all those responsible will be held accountable, they added.
Check out what the scene looks like on the ground:
Add Comment