Russia beats the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy in deadliest attacks this year

Cnn
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The Russian rockets met the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy in the deadliest attack this year and killed at least 31 people, including two children, when the residents gathered for the Sunday services of the church services, said President Volodymyr Zelensky.

At least 84 people, including seven children, were also injured in the strikes in the center of the city, which has been the worst attack on Ukrainian civilians since 2023.

Last week, 20 people killed in the city center of Kryvyi Rih in a Russian rocket attack.

Zelensky said the fatal strikes were carried out by ballistic rockets and in a statement a “strong reaction in the world” were required.

“Russia wants exactly this kind of terror and pulls out this war,” he said. “Peace is impossible without pressure on the attacker. Talking never stopped ballistic rockets and bombs. We have to treat Russia as a terrorist.”

The strikes met the city center on Palm Sunday when the residents, according to the Ukrainian Economic Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, visited the services the most busiest church days of the year.

Two ballistic rockets were fired from Russia to the city center, said Volodymyr Arstyukh, head of the military administration in the region. “At that time, many people were on the street,” he said.

“The enemy hoped to add the greatest damage to people in the city of Sumy.”

Artem Kobzar, reigning mayor of Sumy, confirmed the number of fatalities and said: “Many people were killed today as a result of the rocket strike.”

A video that is posted by Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko shows firefighters who answer, bring cars on fire at the scene and evacuate a woman from her home. Under the destruction in the city center there are destroyed buildings, blown out windows and piles of rubble. Body, which are covered in emergency courtyards, can be seen on the floor.

The Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called it “absolutely evil” to start the attacks on a Christian vacation and found that the rockets met a city residential area.

“We ask the partners to provide Ukraine additional air defense skills and increase the pressure on Moscow,” said Sybiha in an explanation that corresponds to X. “Strength is the only language you can understand and the only way to put an end to terrible terror.”

Unpasted photos and videos from the scenes show that there are on the street on the street and rescue efforts. The film material posted in the telegram shows that the moment, scored the hit, has scored the city and register a loud noise and a large black cloud of smoke in the air.

Kaja Kallas, the head of foreign policy of the European Union, described the incident as a “terrible example of the intensive attacks in Russia, while Ukraine accepted an unconditional ceasefire”.

Russia has increased air strikes and rocket attacks in the Sumy region in recent weeks, as the Ukrainian armed forces pushed out from a large part of the adjacent Russian territory of Kursk. His armed forces also occupied some small settlements in the Sumy region.

In the past 24 hours, other Russian attacks have killed eight people in the Donetsk, Kharkiv and Kherson regions and were injured at least 18.

This is a developing history and is updated.