After shelling in Desna, northeast of kyiv last Saturday, the Russian military has intensified its strikes in recent days and a Russian missile hit a "busy" shopping center in Kremenchuk, central Kiev on Monday. Ukraine, according to kyiv.
“The occupiers fired a missile at a shopping center where there were more than a thousand civilians.
The shopping center is on fire and rescuers are fighting the fire,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Facebook on Monday evening.
At least 21 dead and 59 injured
Over the hours, the toll worsened, from two dead and 20 injured in the first hours, to at least 21 dead and 59 injured according to the latest report indicated by the regional governor.
Rescue operations continue as the shopping center has been completely devastated by the bombardment.
An attack condemned by the international community
"The missile fire on Kremenchuk hit a very crowded place that has no connection with the hostilities", for his part indicated on Facebook Vitali Maletsky, the mayor of the city.
In the wake of this bombardment, the entire international community condemned this act, French President Emmanuel Macron speaking in particular of "absolute horror".
The bombing of a shopping mall in Kremenchuk by Russia is absolute horror.
We share the pain of the families of the victims.
And anger at such ignominy.
The Russian people must see the truth: pic.twitter.com/7drortbGSE
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) June 27, 2022
Russian army says it targeted arms depot
For its part, the Russian army said on Tuesday that it had hit an arms depot in Kremenchuk the day before, causing explosions which, according to Moscow, set fire to a disused shopping mall, which was closed to the public.
The Ministry of Defense in its daily press release claimed to have destroyed with “high precision” missiles warehouses of armaments delivered by Westerners which were located on the territory of a construction vehicle factory adjoining the shopping center.
“The detonations of ammunition intended for Western weapons caused the fire (…) of a shopping center which was not open”, affirmed the Russian army.
Read alsoWar in Ukraine: 8 civilians killed and 21 injured in Lyssytchansk in a Russian bombardment
Since the start of the offensive launched against its Ukrainian neighbor on February 24, Russia has systematically rejected all accusations of strikes or crimes having targeted civilians, speaking of stagings or placing the blame on the adversary.
Moscow also did not recognize any blunders that resulted in civilian casualties.
