Russia and Ukraine Trade Strikes, 14 Killed
Russia and Ukraine continue to trade strikes, with the latest attacks resulting in multiple civilian casualties. A Ukrainian attack on Russian territory killed at least nine people, while Russian strikes on Ukraine left at least five dead.
The attacks occurred as both nations escalate the scale and intensity of their operations against one another, nearly four and a half years into the protracted war. Kyiv has launched waves of retaliatory strikes against Russia, including targeting energy facilities and retail warehouses, in an effort to pressure Moscow into negotiations to end its offensive.
A Ukrainian air strike on the Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, killed four people on Sunday morning. The region’s acting governor, Alexander Shuvaev, said the attack also killed a 13-year-old girl near a playground. “The 13-year-old girl was seriously injured. Medical personnel who arrived at the scene took all possible measures to save her, but her injuries proved fatal,” Shuvaev said.
Ukraine also launched a separate drone attack in Russia’s Saratov region, bordering Kazakhstan, which killed two people. In a further incident, a drone strike targeted a vehicle in the Udmurtia region, more than 1,000 kilometres from the front line, killing three. “These actions are horrific because they are senseless. These people were clearly not military targets,” said acting regional governor Olga Abramova.
Meanwhile, in Ukraine, Russian strikes killed two people in the eastern Dnipropetrovsk region. One person was killed in each of the southern Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions as a result of the attacks, according to regional authorities. In a separate attack, a Russian strike destroyed a postal terminal in the northern Kharkiv region, killing a postal worker, according to operator Nova Poshta.
US-led negotiations to end the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II have stalled since February, when the United States and Israel launched a joint strike against Iran. Both Russia and Ukraine deny targeting civilians.