Kharkiv Attack: Russia Targets Civilians, Ukraine Seeks Defense
At least eleven people were killed in bombings in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region on Sunday, according to news.ro.
Following an intensification of airstrikes, the Russian army launched a ground assault in this border region. This offensive enabled them to secure their most significant territorial gains since late 2022. Kyiv maintains that the Russian advance has been halted, a claim disputed by Moscow.
A recreation centre on the outskirts of Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, was struck by rocket fire from the neighbouring Russian Belgorod region on Sunday. Ukrainian officials reported that six people, including a pregnant woman, were killed in the attack. One person remains missing, and 27 others sustained injuries.
"The injured include a police officer and an ambulance driver who responded to assist after the initial strike," explained the Kharkiv prosecutor's office. They further accused Russia of again resorting to the deadly tactic of successive strikes.
According to law enforcement officials, the same location was targeted again just 20 minutes after emergency responders arrived at the scene.
Russia has faced repeated criticism for employing this double-strike tactic, which involves bombing an area once and then again when emergency services personnel arrive.
Shortly after the attack on the recreation centre, five civilians were killed and nine injured in multiple rocket attacks on the villages of Novoossynove and Kivcharivka, as reported by Kharkiv regional governor Oleg Synegoubov.
In response to these attacks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for "two Patriot missile defence systems for Kharkiv." These American-made systems are capable of fundamentally altering the situation on the ground.
Governor Synegoubov has declared May 20 a day of mourning.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
