At least 16 people were killed in Russian air strikes on southeastern Ukraine on Tuesday, damaging schools, hospitals and a passenger train, according to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky. The strikes, in the Dnipropetrovsk region, wounded more than 100 others, Zelensky said. Three more people, including a toddler, were reported killed in separate strikes on the northeastern city of Sumy. The rare daytime attack came as Zelensky arrived at the Nato summit in the Netherlands for meetings with European leaders. Zelensky is also expected to meet US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the summit to discuss defence arrangements and further sanctions on Russia. Writing about the Dnipropetrovsk strikes on social media, Zelensky accused Russian forces of a "complete disregard for life". "This is not a fight where it's hard to choose a side," he wrote. "Standing with Ukraine means defending life. I am grateful to everyone who is helping." Emergency services in the region published images of rescuers helping civilians covered in blood after the attack. Although no-one was killed on the train, dramatic footage filmed by a passenger showed her being rocked and bloodied by the moment of impact. The local military administration said it was damaged by the blast from a ballistic missile that landed nearby. Dnipropetrovsk has come under threat from Russian battlefield advances in recent weeks, with small units crossing the border into the industrial region and Russia claiming to have gained a foothold there. Ukrainian military officials say they have been successful in pushing Russian forces back from the border area. In the Sumy region, the head of the military administration, Oleh Hryhorov, said a five-year-old boy was pulled from the rubble of a destroyed house. "The strike took the lives of people from different families. They all lived on the same street. They went to sleep in their homes but the Russian drones interrupted their sleep - forever," Hryhorov said. Two people were also killed in the town of Samar, close to Dnipro, state emergencies service said. The timing of Tuesday's strikes – as President Zelensky arrived in the Hague for the Nato summit – has led to accusations from Kyiv that Russia is deliberately sabotaging peace talks between the two warring countries and seeking to prolong the war. Last week, on the eve of anticipated talks between Zelensky and Trump at the G7 summit in Canada, Russia launched another barrage of strikes which pounded Kyiv for nine hours and killed more than 30 people across the country. Direct talks between Russia and Ukraine held last month in Istanbul produced only an agreement on the exchange of prisoners of war and the bodies of the dead, and no further negotiations have been scheduled.
Russian missile strikes kill 16 in Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region
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"Russian Missile Strikes in Dnipropetrovsk Region Result in 16 Deaths and Over 100 Injuries"
Bbc News
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TruthLens AI Summary
On Tuesday, a series of Russian missile strikes targeted southeastern Ukraine, particularly affecting the Dnipropetrovsk region, resulting in the tragic deaths of at least 16 individuals and injuring more than 100 others, as reported by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The attacks caused significant damage to vital infrastructure, including schools, hospitals, and a passenger train, although no fatalities were reported on the train itself. Dramatic footage captured by a passenger revealed the chaos and panic during the strike, highlighting the severity of the situation. Concurrently, separate strikes in the northeastern city of Sumy led to the deaths of three more people, including a young child. Zelensky condemned the strikes on social media, labeling them as evidence of Russian forces' complete disregard for human life and emphasizing the moral imperative to support Ukraine in its defense against aggression. Emergency services have been working tirelessly in the aftermath of the strikes, rescuing civilians and documenting the devastating effects of the attacks, which have left many families grieving their losses.
The timing of these missile strikes has raised suspicions that Russia is attempting to undermine peace negotiations, particularly as President Zelensky was attending a NATO summit in the Netherlands at the time. Zelensky is expected to engage in discussions with European leaders about defense arrangements and potential further sanctions against Russia, including a planned meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump. The Dnipropetrovsk region has recently seen increased military activity from Russian forces, with reports of small units crossing the border, although Ukrainian military officials assert they have successfully pushed back these advances. The ongoing conflict has seen previous attempts at peace talks yield little progress, with recent discussions resulting only in agreements on prisoner exchanges. As the war continues, the humanitarian toll of the conflict remains severe, with families being torn apart and communities left in ruins by the relentless violence.
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