KYIV, Ukraine — A mid-day missile strike by Russian forces in Zaporizhzhia, southern Ukraine, resulted in the deaths of at least 13 civilians and left around 30 others injured on Wednesday, according to local authorities.
Videos shared by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on his Telegram channel depicted harrowing scenes of civilians lying on a street scattered with debris, while emergency responders rushed to treat the injured and transport them on stretchers.
Throughout the nearly three-year conflict, Russian military operations have frequently targeted civilian populations, leading to numerous fatalities among non-combatants in what stands as Europe’s largest military conflict since World War II.
Both Zelenskyy and regional Governor Ivan Fedorov confirmed that at least 13 civilians lost their lives in the assault. Just moments prior to the missile strikes, Fedorov had issued a warning about the imminent threat of high-speed missiles and destructive glide bombs aimed at the Zaporizhzhia region.
The attack began in the early afternoon, with Fedorov reporting that at least two glide bombs hit residential buildings in Zaporizhzhia. He declared Thursday as a day of mourning to honor the victims.
Zelenskyy expressed his outrage, stating on Telegram, “There is nothing more brutal than aerial bombing of a city, knowing that ordinary civilians will suffer.” He also reiterated the necessity for countries seeking an end to the war to provide Ukraine with robust guarantees for its future defense. Ukrainian officials are apprehensive that any ceasefire or peace arrangement may simply allow Russia a chance to regroup and redeploy unless countered by military strength.
During a press conference in Kyiv, Zelenskyy addressed remarks made earlier by President-elect Donald Trump, who expressed an understanding of Russia’s resistance to Ukraine joining NATO. He noted that some countries, including the United States, Germany, Hungary, and Slovakia, have hindered Ukraine’s immediate accession to the 32-nation alliance. NATO has only acknowledged that the nation is on an “irreversible path” towards membership.
Earlier in the day, the Ukrainian military reported a successful strike on a fuel storage facility deep within Russian territory, resulting in a massive fire at a site that serves a key Russian air base. Russian officials confirmed a significant drone attack in the region and announced the establishment of an emergency command post to manage the resulting fire.
Ukraine’s General Staff indicated that the aerial assault targeted the storage depot located near Engels, in Russia’s Saratov region, approximately 600 kilometers (370 miles) from the Ukrainian border. The depot was crucial for an airstrip used by aircraft launching missiles into Ukraine, as per a statement released on Facebook.
Ukraine continues to expand its arsenal of domestically produced long-range missiles and drones, which are capable of reaching deep behind enemy lines, especially as its military faces limits on the range of Western-supplied armaments directed towards Russian targets.
These Ukrainian offensives have significantly disrupted Russian supply chains during the ongoing war, which commenced on February 24, 2022, and have created challenges for the Kremlin. Zelenskyy previously mentioned that Ukraine has developed a weapon with a striking range of 700 kilometers (approximately 400 miles), with some drone operations effectively hitting targets over 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) away.
Roman Busargin, governor of the Saratov region, reported that an unconfirmed industrial site in Engels was damaged by debris from the downed drones, although there were no casualties. Engel’s population exceeds 220,000, and it is situated on the left bank of the Volga River, home to various industrial facilities, while Saratov sits across the river with a population of around 900,000.
According to the statement from Ukraine’s General Staff, “The damage to the oil base creates serious logistical problems for the strategic aviation of the Russian occupiers and significantly reduces their ability to strike peaceful Ukrainian cities and civilian infrastructure. To be continued.”
In response to the Ukrainian offensive, Russian authorities imposed flight restrictions early Wednesday at the airports in Saratov, Ulyanovsk, Kazan, and Nizhnekamsk. This comes as the primary base for Russia’s nuclear-capable strategic bombers lies just outside Engels, which has already faced drone attacks from Ukrainian forces since the conflict began, prompting the relocation of most bombers to other areas.
