At least 18 dead after Russian missiles hit crowded Ukrainian shopping mall

According to DW, at least 18 people have died and 59 have been injured in two missile strikes on a Ukrainian shopping mall located in the industrial city of Kremenchuk on Monday, June 27.

Image: Ukrainian State Emergency Service / Handout

An on-site Reuters correspondent described the “charred husk of a shopping complex with a caved-in roof” and how soldiers and firefighters were trying to pull out survivors from the twisted metal debris.

Image: Ukrainian State Emergency Service / Handout

Thick smoke came out from the burning remains of the structure, making the work of the rescue team more difficult.

Image: Ukrainian State Emergency Service / Handout

The New York Times reports that this follows a noticeable escalation of missile strikes, with 65 hitting Ukraine during the weekend.

Leaders of the G7, which represent the seven wealthiest countries in the world, were gathering in Germany at the time and denounced Russia’s actions as “war crimes”.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, meanwhile, described the missile strike as “one of the most daring terrorist attacks in European history”.

Zelensky accused Russia of purposely committing the strikes during the shopping mall’s busiest hours to ensure the largest number of victims.

Image: Ukrainian State Emergency Service / Handout

“It is impossible to even imagine the number of victims… It's useless to hope for decency and humanity from Russia”, the Ukrainian leader wrote on Telegram, according to Reuters.

Zelensky added that more than 1,000 shoppers and mall staff managed to escape.

Image: Ukrainian State Emergency Service / Handout

“I heard a first explosion, then a second and then there was a lot of black smoke”, one of the survivors told DW.

Ukrainian authorities, however, have pointed out that there were people inside the rubble and more bodies were expected to be found.

Image: Ukrainian State Emergency Service / Handout

DW explains that Kremenchuk, located east of Kyiv, is an important transportation hub and home to the country’s biggest oil refinery.

In the image: Volodymyr Zelensky visiting a railway car factory in Kremenchuk in March 2020.

The city, located on the banks of the Dnipro river, has over 200,000 inhabitants and is located halfway between Ukraine’s capital and the Donbas region.

Pictured: The remains of the Amstor Mall, the day after the missile strikes.

Russia's deputy ambassador to the United Nations, Dmitry Polyanskiy, wrote on Twitter, without citing evidence, that the attack was a “Ukrainian provocation”, as quoted by Reuters.

Russia is currently suspended from the United Nations Human Rights Council due to its invasion of Ukraine in February.

Other acts during the military conflict, such as the dead civilians found executed in Bucha, have led to mounting accusations against the Kremlin of committing atrocities during this war.