Russian drones struck a bustling shopping centre in central Ukraine, killing 16 people in an attack that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denounced as cynical and despicable.
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas denounced the Friday attack on Kryvyi Rih, President Zelenskyy’s hometown, as ‘terror by design,’ and announced plans to propose the most extensive Russia sanctions package since the war began at the upcoming ministers’ meeting in Ireland.
Kallas stated on X that the strike on the Kryvyi Rih shopping centre reveals the utter depravity of Moscow’s war, adding that Russia aims to render Ukrainian cities uninhabitable.
The attack follows a surge in Russian bombardments across Ukrainian cities over recent months. In a separate incident, the interior minister, Ivan Vygivsky, reported via Telegram that four additional people, three of them children, were killed in a strike on the southern Mykolaiv region.
Social media footage from the Kryvyi Rih strike depicted rescuers hurrying to aid the wounded outside the building while smoke billowed from the structure.
Approximately thirty minutes later, a second drone hit the building’s roof, a follow‑on strike that Zelenskyy characterized on X as aimed at emergency responders.
Ukrainian emergency services initially reported 15 fatalities and 130 injuries, including 23 children.
Oleksandr Ganzha, head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration, later announced via Telegram that the death toll had increased to 16.
In an X post, Zelenskyy condemned the strike as an absolutely cynical and despicable attack on a typical shopping centre carried out by Russian forces.
Kryvyi Rih, an industrial city roughly 60 kilometres (37 miles) from the front line, has endured repeated Russian attacks throughout the conflict.
On Monday, Ukraine’s allies will convene to reaffirm their support for Kyiv in talks coinciding with the nation’s Independence Day. The gathering of the so‑called “coalition of the willing” will be co‑chaired by French President Emmanuel Macron, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
Approximately ten leaders, among them European Council President António Costa, are expected to attend the coalition meeting in Kyiv, an EU official said.
Zelenskyy called for a robust response from Ukraine’s allies.
“The world must respond accordingly—applying genuine pressure on the aggressor. Peace will only be possible if Russia is held truly accountable,” he said.
Zelenskyy spoke with UN Secretary‑General António Guterres on Friday, briefing him on Russian strikes and the resulting civilian casualties, as he noted on X.
Kyiv has repeatedly urged its allies for further assistance as Russia intensifies its strikes, noting that Ukrainian forces continue to struggle to intercept salvoes of ballistic missiles.
