At Least 7 Killed, Scores More Injured in Russian Missile Strikes on Donetsk

Facts

• At least seven people were killed and 88 more were injured after Russian missiles struck the Donetsk city of Pokrovsk in the early hours of Tuesday, local officials have said.¹
• According to Pavlo Kyrylenko, Ukraine's governor for Donetsk (which is largely occupied by Russia), the dead consisted of five civilians, one rescue worker, and one soldier. He added the injured consisted of 31 police officers, seven emergency service workers, and four soldiers.²
• Kyrylenko also said that the two missiles struck within 40 minutes of each other, accusing Russia of employing a "double tap" — military jargon for deliberately targeting rescue workers as they search for survivors from an initial strike on the scene.²
• He further stated that 12 multi-story buildings were damaged as well as a hotel, a pharmacy, two stores, and two cafes.²
• A further four civilians were killed and nine more were injured in two separate attacks on the Kharkiv region overnight.²
• Russia was accused of deploying a similar "double tap" tactic in Kharkiv, with local officials stating that emergency service workers were fired upon while conducting rescue operations at one of the blast sites. Two of them were among the injured.³

Sources: ¹Ukrainska Pravda (a), ²Associated Press, and ³Ukrainska Pravda (b).

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Associated Press. Not only has Russia repeatedly launched attacks on Ukrainians civilians, they have repeatedly deployed the "double tap" strategy that deliberately targets its emergency service workers. The international community must condemn these barbaric tactics.
• Pro-Russia narrative, as provided by TASS. Russia has repeatedly made clear that it does not and would not target civilians. All strikes are directed at military targets, including military warehouses, fuel depots and training facilities. These latest statements from Ukrainian officials are attempts to vilify justified Russian counterattacks.

Predictions