Russian missile strike kills three, injures dozens in Ukraine

A Russian missile strike has struck the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih on Tuesday in a devastating attack, resulting in the loss of three lives and leaving 32 people wounded, according to local authorities. Simultaneous air attacks were also reported in Kyiv and other cities across the country..

The governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region, which encompasses Kryvyi Rih, confirmed that a five-storey building in the city, also the birthplace of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, was completely destroyed. “Based on preliminary reports, three residents lost their lives, while 25 individuals sustained injuries. There are still people trapped under the rubble,” said Serhiy Lysak through the messaging app Telegram. He further revealed that although three cruise missiles were successfully intercepted, others managed to penetrate the city’s defenses.

As missile and drone attacks targeted Kyiv and Kharkiv, air raid alerts were issued across Ukraine. The Kyiv city military administration stated, “Based on initial reports, the enemy utilized Kh-101/555 cruise missiles.” Fortunately, the administration confirmed that all hostile targets in the airspace around Kyiv were detected and eliminated by the air defense forces, with no immediate information regarding casualties or damage.

These fresh waves of air attacks followed Ukraine’s recent claims of recapturing several villages and making progress in its counter-offensive against Russian forces. President Zelensky expressed his dismay on Twitter, stating, “More terrorist missiles, Russian killers continue their war against residential buildings, ordinary cities, and people. Unfortunately, there are dead and wounded.” Zelensky assured that rescue operations in Kryvyi Rih were ongoing.

Meanwhile, in Kharkiv, civilian infrastructure was struck by a drone attack, causing damage to a utility company in the Kyivskyi district and a warehouse in the Saltivskyi district. Mayor Ihor Terekhov shared, “According to preliminary reports, an explosion occurred in the latter, leading to a fire.”

Air alerts were also sounded in the Dnipropetrovsk oblast, as well as the neighboring Donetsk and Poltava regions.

Notably, Ukraine’s defense minister, Ganna Malyar, reported the liberation of seven settlements, including Lobkovo, Levadne, and Novodarivka in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, which houses Europe’s largest nuclear plant that is currently under Russian occupation. Ukrainian forces also regained control of the village of Storozheve in the south of the Donetsk region, close to three villages recaptured the previous day. Malyar revealed that the territory now under Ukrainian control encompassed an area of 90 square kilometers. The defense ministry further claimed that their forces had advanced 250 to 700 meters towards the flashpoint city of Bakhmut.

In response, Russia stated that it repelled Ukrainian attacks in the Donetsk region near Velyka Novosilka and fended off assaults around the village of Levadne in the Zaporizhzhia region. However, the veracity of these claims from both Moscow and Kyiv could not be independently verified.

Military analysts noted that Ukraine has yet to fully deploy its forces in the counter-offensive. Currently, targeted attacks are being employed to test and shape the frontlines, identify vulnerabilities, and determine the best course of action.

In the midst of these developments, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, is scheduled to visit Kyiv and meet with President Zelensky before proceeding to the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia