Topline
A Russian strike on two residential buildings in eastern Ukraine killed at least 15 people and may have left dozens more stranded under the rubble, Ukrainian officials said Sunday, as Russian forces continue to push into Ukraine’s southeastern Donbas region.
Firefighters and members of a rescue team clear the scene after a building was partially destroyed … [+]
Key Facts
A Saturday afternoon rocket attack nearly leveled a five-story residential block in Chasiv Yar, a town of about 12,000 in the Donetsk province, the region’s governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said on Telegram.
Five people have been pulled from the rubble, he said, but emergency services are trying to rescue as many as 24 people who are believed to still be stuck, including a nine-year-old child.
Tangent
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a Saturday video address that Russia is targeting civilian residences in “brutal” attacks, which Russia has denied. “We have more proof of Russia’s crimes, that they shell residential areas of any community, whether it’s close to the front lines or not,” Kyrylenko told a Ukrainian television station, according to NBC News. Late last month, at least 21 people were killed after Russian missiles struck a residential building in Odesa, Ukrainian officials said, just a day after a rocket attack on a crowded shopping mall in Kremenchuk left at least 19 dead.
Key Background
Donetsk and Luhansk, which comprise the southeastern Donbas region, have been the target of attacks for more than a month, as Russian forces try to take control of the Donbas and move west into the interior of Ukraine. Russia took over the final Ukrainian-controlled city in Luhansk last week, and has launched attacks in Donetsk in recent days, including near the town of Chasiv Yar, according to the Institute for the Study of War. President Joe Biden authorized a $400 million military aid package for Ukraine on Friday, including four additional HIMARS rocket launchers that Zelensky said Saturday are necessary to reduce Russian attack capabilities.
Further Reading
At Least 18 People Dead After Russian Missiles Strike Residential Building In Odesa (Forbes)
At Least 18 Dead After Russian Strike On Ukrainian Mall Decried By Zelensky As ‘Terrorist Attack’ (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2022/07/10/at-least-15-killed-in-russian-strike-on-ukrainian-apartments-officials-say/