At Least 6 Dead, 75 Hurt in Attack on Zelensky's Hometown

Missile strikes followed Ukraine president's remarks on attacks inside Russia
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jul 31, 2023 1:56 PM CDT
At Least 6 Dead, 75 Hurt in Attack on Zelensky's Hometown
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Interior Ministry Press Office, a burning apartment building is seen after a missile attack in Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, Monday, July 31, 2023.   (Ukrainian Interior Ministry Press Office via AP)

Russian ballistic missiles slammed into an apartment complex and a university building in President Volodymyr Zelensky's hometown Monday, killing at least six people and wounding 75 others as the blasts trapped residents beneath rubble, Ukrainian officials said. One of the two missiles that hit the central city of Kryvyi Rih destroyed part of an apartment building between the fourth and ninth floors, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said. Video showed black smoke billowing from corner units and burned out or damaged cars on a tree-lined street, the AP reports. More than 350 people were involved in the rescue operation, Zelensky said in a Telegram post.

The morning attack also destroyed part of a four-story university building. The strike on Zelensky's hometown, which has been hit in the past, happened a day after the Ukrainian president seemed to warn of more attacks inside Russia. "Gradually, the war is returning to the territory of Russia—to its symbolic centers and military bases, and this is an inevitable, natural and absolutely fair process," Zelensky said Sunday in his nightly video address. It was not clear whether the missile strikes were in retaliation for his comments.

Ukrainian drone attacks on Russia and Moscow-annexed territory, especially Crimea, have become more frequent. The latest strike, on Sunday, damaged two office buildings a few miles from the Kremlin. Ukrainian officials did not acknowledge the attack. Russia tightened security in the aftermath of that attack, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday, describing the assault as an "act of desperation." Another Ukrainian drone targeted a district police department early Monday in Russia's Bryansk region, which borders Ukraine, but there were no casualties, the local governor said. (More Russia-Ukraine war stories.)

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