Fire erupted after a missile struck a mall in Ukraine, killing at least 16 people

• Image Credit: Internet

• Jun 28, 2022 | Poonam Nath

According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, over a thousand civilians were in the mall when the rockets struck the city.

Digital Desk: Sergiy Kruk, chief of Ukraine's emergency services said early on Tuesday that the death toll from a Russian missile strike on a mall in the country's capital city of Kremenchuk has grown to 16 and 59 injuries.

"As of right now, we are aware of 16 fatalities, 59 injuries, and 25 hospitalizations. The data is being updated," said Sergiy Kruk on Telegram.

Following Monday's strike at the retail centre, he claimed that the key responsibilities were "rescue work, debris disposal, and fire eradication."

The Defence of Ukraine stated the situation through social media on Twitter-the tweet reads, "Another act of the Russian genocide of the Ukrainian people. This time, the ruscists targeted a mall in #Kremenchuk in the afternoon, when it is always especially crowded. The war criminals wanted to kill the civilians, deliberately aiming for the maximum number of casualties." 

Zelensky had earlier claimed that "over a thousand civilians" had been at the mall when the rockets hit the city, which had 220,000 residents prior to the war.

"The mall is on fire, and firefighters are putting it out." "Unimaginable is the number of victims." In a post on Facebook, Zelensky.

In a video the president of Ukraine posted, a fire truck and hundreds of rescuers could be seen outside a burning mall.

In photographs released by emergency services, firefighters and rescuers are seen attempting to clear the debris from the burning building's remnants.

The strike, according to the Ukrainian defence ministry, was planned to occur during the busiest times at the mall and result in the greatest number of casualties.

The mall was reportedly struck by Kh-22 anti-ship missiles fired from Tu-22 aircraft in the Kursk region of western Russia, according to the Ukrainian air force.

Vitali Maletsky, the mayor of the city, posted on Facebook that "the missile firing on Kremenchuk impacted a fairly busy location which had no link to the hostilities."

Lunin called the attack a "crime against humanity" and a "war crime," calling it a "cynical act of terror on the civilian population."

Dmytro Kuleba, the foreign minister of Ukraine, urged Russia to face new sanctions and for additional heavy weapons to be supplied by Kyiv's allies.

He stated on Twitter that "Russia is a disgrace to humanity and must face consequences."

Mykhaylo Podolyak, a presidential aide, called Russia a "terrorist state."

The world is shocked by Russia's missile assault today that struck a busy Ukrainian retail mall, the latest in a succession of crimes, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote on Twitter.

The attack, according to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, showed Vladimir Putin's "depths of brutality and barbarism."

The incident was denounced by the French foreign ministry as well.

It stated on Twitter that Russia "continues its appalling violations of international humanitarian law by indiscriminately targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure."

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