A view shows a crater that appeared after a Russian missile attack on a structure at a resort, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kharkiv, Ukraine May 19, 2024. REUTERS/ Valentin Ogirenko
Valentin Ogirenko | Reuters
Russia attacked a busy lakeside resort on the edge of Ukraine’s second-largest city on Sunday and also hit villages in the surrounding area, killing at least 11 people and wounding scores more.
These missile attacks are the latest in a series of repeated Russian attacks in recent weeks on Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region, where Russian army launched an attack.
Valentyna, 69, had blood streaming down her face at the lakeside resort where her home was destroyed and a crowded restaurant nearby was destroyed. Her husband was swept away by the water, she said, pointing toward the area near the shore, where there is now a crater, rubble and corpses.
“Losing my husband, losing my house, losing everything in the world, I’m so hurt, so hurt,” she screamed in tears. “They (Russians) are animals, why do they have to kill people?”
Prosecutors said six people were killed there, one person remains missing and 27 were injured. Rescuers said the initial attack was followed by a second attack about 20 minutes later, targeting emergency teams at the scene in a so-called “double tap”.
“There were never any soldiers here,” said Yaroslav Trofimko, a police inspector who arrived after the first strike and was then caught up in the second. “It’s a Sunday, people have to be here to rest, children have to be here, pregnant women, rest, enjoy a normal lifestyle.”
Another five people were killed and nine injured later in the day in two villages in Kupiansk district. Local governor Oleh Syniehubov said Russian forces shelled two villages in the district with self-propelled multiple rocket launchers.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy again called on Western allies to provide Kyiv with additional air defense systems to protect Kharkov and other cities.
“The world can stop Russian terrorism – and to do that, it is necessary to overcome the lack of political will of leaders,” Mr. Zelenskyy said on Telegram.
“Two Patriots for Kharkov will make a fundamental difference,” he said, referring to the Patriot missile defense system. The president added that air defense systems for other cities and full support for soldiers on the front lines would ensure Russia’s defeat.
