Kyiv, Ukraine, August 28, 2024 — Russian missiles hit the city of Kryvyi Rih, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s hometown, on Wednesday, local officials reported. This attack occurred as the city was observing an official day of mourning for the victims of a previous assault that killed four civilians at a hotel.
The latest missile strike targeted civilian infrastructure, injuring eight people, according to Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the local administration. The attack followed a barrage of missiles and drones launched by Russia across Ukraine for the second consecutive day.
Regional head Serhii Lysak condemned the renewed assault, stating, “When Kryvyi Rih is in mourning, the enemy attacks again. And it once again aims at civilians.”
Russia’s recent aerial offensive began on Monday with over 100 missiles and an equivalent number of drones, marking its most significant assault in weeks. This intensified campaign comes at a critical juncture in the ongoing conflict, which began on February 24, 2022.
Russian forces have made significant advances in Ukraine’s partially occupied eastern Donetsk region, closing in on Pokrovsk, a crucial logistics hub for Ukrainian defenses. Concurrently, Ukrainian forces have launched incursions into Russia’s Kursk region, marking the largest attack on Russian soil since World War II. This incursion aims to divert Russian troops from the Donetsk front.
At the hotel in Kryvyi Rih, rescuers recovered a final body from the rubble, concluding the rescue operation.
In response to the increased Russian attacks, Ukraine claimed success with its anti-aircraft defenses, reportedly shooting down a Russian Su-25 jet in Donetsk. Additionally, Ukraine has intensified its long-range drone strikes on Russian logistical targets.
A Ukrainian security official, speaking anonymously, disclosed that Ukrainian military intelligence had targeted oil depots in Russia’s Rostov and Kirov regions on Wednesday. This marks the first known Ukrainian strike on the Kirov region, located about 950 kilometers (600 miles) northeast of the Ukrainian border. Kirov’s governor, Alexander Sokolov, reported that three Ukrainian drones fell near an oil depot but caused no damage.
