Russian missile attack on eastern Ukraine kills seven, three of them children
A Russian missile attack on the town of Vilniansk in the eastern Ukrainian region of Zaporizhzhia killed seven people, including three children, local officials said on Sunday.
At least 38 people were also wounded in Saturday evening's attack, authorities said, and declared a day of mourning on Sunday. Eight of them were reportedly children.
The attack caused a huge fire and severe damage to residential buildings, critical infrastructure and vehicles.
Ukrainian officials published photos of bodies stretched out under picnic blankets in a park in Vilniansk, and deep craters in the blackened earth next to the charred, twisted remains of a building.
Firefighters could be seen battling the flames and conducting rescue operations.
Governor Ivan Fedorov said shortly after the attack that it took place "in broad daylight on a weekend in a place where people were spending their leisure time downtown. Without any military infrastructure.”
Police investigators and the Security Service of Ukraine have opened an investigation into the potential war crime.
Vilniansk is in the Zaporizhzhia region, less than 30 kilometres from the local capital and north of the front lines, as Russian forces continue to occupy part of the province.
