A Russian missile attack on civilian targets in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region killed 50 people on Thursday, including a 6-year-old boy, according to reports by Ukrainian officials.
Russian forces shelled a shop and a café in the village of Hroza around 1 p.m., in what Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called a “particularly brutal” crime. Fifty people have been confirmed dead and at least seven more are injured, according to reports from Zelenskyy’s office and from regional governor Oleh Syniehubov.
“Russian terror must be stopped,” Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram. “All those who help Russia circumvent sanctions are criminals. Everyone who supports Russia until now supports evil.”
Zelenskyy, who is in Granada, Spain on Thursday to attend the European Political Community summit, has asked for support from European leaders to strengthen air defenses against Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ongoing assault.
Ukrainian prosecutors, under the guidance of the Kupiansk District Prosecutor’s Office of Kharkiv region, have started a pre-trial investigation into whether the attack violated the laws and customs of war, combined with premeditated murder.
The search and rescue operation is still ongoing.
Veronika Melkozerova contributed reporting.
