At Least 10 Killed in Russian Missile Strikes on Donetsk

Facts

• At least 10 civilians were killed and upwards of 60 people were injured after Russian missile strikes targeted the Donetsk city of Kramatorsk late on Tuesday.¹
• Ukrainian officials said that two Russian Iskander missiles hit a popular pizza restaurant that was busy with diners at the time of the strikes. Pavlo Kyrylenko, Ukraine's governor of the Donetsk region, said: "Two rockets were fired at a food establishment in the center of the city where there were a great number of civilians."²
• The attack also damaged 18 multi-story buildings, 65 houses, five schools, two kindergartens, a shopping center, an administrative building and a recreational building, Kyrylenko said.¹
• Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov meanwhile insisted that Russia "does not strike at civilian infrastructure" and that strikes are carried out "only on objects that are connected with military infrastructure."³
• Separately, Russia's defense ministry said the attack on Kramatorsk — which lies in Ukrainian-held territory just over 22 miles (35 km) northwest of Bakhmut — targeted Ukraine's 56th Motorized Infantry Brigade. Footage from the aftermath of the strikes on social media appeared to confirm the presence of military casualties, as well as foreign mercenaries, among the rubble.⁴
• Meanwhile, the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) on Wednesday said it had arrested a local man from Kramatorsk, accusing him of taking videos of the strike location before sending the footage on to Russian intelligence services. In a statement, Vasyl Maliuk, head of the SSU, said: "The Russian agent will be held accountable in a Ukrainian court."⁵

Sources: ¹Associated Press, ²Guardian, ³CNN, ⁴Atlas News, and ⁵Ukrainska Pravda.

Narratives

• Anti-Russia narrative, as provided by Guardian. In this latest attack, Russia has continued its long trend of deliberately targeting civilians in order to inflict the maximum amount of terror on Ukraine. Moscow must be defeated, and one day be held accountable for all these crimes.
• Pro-Russia narrative, as provided by TASS. Any allegation that Russia deliberately targets civilians in attacks is categorically untrue. Russia only strikes military targets, and the attack in question struck Ukraine's 56th Motorized Infantry Brigade.

Predictions