(Reuters) – Two Russian missiles struck a crowded area of restaurants in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk on Tuesday, the governor of Donetsk region said, and emergency services were at the scene determining the number of casualties.
“Just half an hour ago, two missiles struck the city of Kramatorsk,” the governor, Pavlo Kyrylenko, told Ukrainian television.
“We are now working in the city to establish the number of wounded and possibly dead. This is the city centre. These were public eating places crowded with civilians.”
The strikes occurred in mid-evening. Pictures posted on social media showed parts of some buildings reduced to rubble and smashed building materials scattered on the ground.
Kramatorsk is a major city located to the west of the front lines in Donetsk region and a likely key objective in any Russian advance to move westward to capture all of the region.
The city has been a frequent target of Russian attacks, including a strike on the town’s railway station in April 2022 that killed 63 people.
Russia denies targeting civilian sites in what it has described as a “special military operation” since invading its neighbour in February 2022.
(Reporting by Ron Popeski and Nick Starkov; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Leslie Adler)
