Russian Drone Strike Claims 15 Lives at Ukrainian Mall
At least 15 people were killed when Russian drones performed a "double‑tap" strike on a shopping centre in Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine’s central city. 130 others, 23 of them children, were wounded, and several remain trapped in the rubble.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called the daytime attack "absolutely cynical and despicable," noting that the second drone wave struck emergency workers already on the scene. The attack was confirmed by dramatic footage verified by the BBC.
Regional authorities report that 15 fatalities are confirmed, with two additional deaths later in hospital. Serious injuries count 29, and rescue teams from four other Ukrainian regions have been dispatched for search and rescue operations.
Kryvyi Rih mayor Oleksandr Vilkul described the drones as "flying at extremely low altitudes" and likened the attackers to "animals." He added, "There are missing people who are not responding to calls."
This strike follows other incidents across Ukraine, including four deaths in Mykolaiv, two in Kharkiv, and several injuries in Zaporizhzhia. Moscow continues to control roughly a fifth of Ukrainian territory in the south‑east, while Kyiv maintains an intensified counter‑attack campaign against Russian energy infrastructure and supply depots.
The incident underscores the growing severity of drone warfare in the ongoing conflict and the urgent need for rapid humanitarian response.
