Russian missile strike on Kryvyi Rih kills three
Al Jazeera English
At least three people were killed and 25 wounded in a Russian missile strike on Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, officials said. President Zelenskyy urged faster delivery of air defense systems.
A Russian missile attack on the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih killed at least three people, local authorities reported Tuesday. The strike came as Moscow grapples with mounting economic pressures from the 4.5-year-old war.
Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the Kryvyi Rih defense council, said on Telegram that 25 others were wounded. He accused Russian forces of using cluster munitions in the attack.
“People died within 200 meters (660 feet) of each other because of this barbaric weapon,” Vilkul wrote. He announced a day of mourning would be held Wednesday.
Kyiv has repeatedly accused Moscow of using cluster bombs, which scatter smaller bomblets over a wide area, causing indiscriminate casualties.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the international community to increase pressure on Moscow to end the war and speed up deliveries of air defense systems to Ukraine.
“Every delay in implementing air defense agreements, every delay in supplies to protect Ukraine and Ukrainians, essentially means a loss of life,” he wrote on Telegram.
On the same day, Ukraine said its forces struck a railway bridge, a power plant and other critical infrastructure in Russian-occupied Crimea.
In recent months, both sides have significantly escalated attacks. Moscow continues regular missile barrages against Ukraine, while Kyiv has struck back with drones targeting Russian oil refineries and infrastructure.
Ukrainian drone strikes have contributed to fuel shortages in Russia, with several regions reporting restricted gasoline sales and rising petroleum prices, fueling concerns about the country’s economic stability.
On Monday, the Moscow Exchange index fell 5% before recovering slightly. The index remains near its lowest level since March 2023, while the ruble weakened past 75 to the U.S. dollar for the first time since May 6.
The Kremlin dismissed concerns over the ruble’s decline. “The stability of the Russian economy, macroeconomic stability, is absolutely assured,” spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday.
Meanwhile, efforts to end the war appear stalled as U.S. President Donald Trump shifts focus to Iran. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told foreign diplomats in Moscow on Tuesday that Washington seems “to be abandoning all claims to an objective mediating role and instead pursuing a policy of escalating sanctions pressure on Russia.”
