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Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated.
Russia launched an Iskander-M ballistic missile at Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on April 4, killing at least 18 people and injuring 61, according to Governor Serhii Lysak.
The strike hit a residential neighborhood, setting buildings on fire and causing severe damage, according to Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the city's military administration. Nine children were among the dead, Lysak said. A playground was located near the site of the attack.
More than 40 people remain hospitalized, including a three-month-old boy with cut wounds.
Ukraine's General Staff said in the early hours of April 5 that Russia was "trying to cover up its cynical crime with a 'high-precision' lie about hitting 'the place where the commanders of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were meeting with Western instructors.'"
Russia's Defense Ministry reported shortly after the attack that up to 85 military and foreign officers were killed in the strike on Kryvyi Rih, and 20 vehicles destroyed.
"We declare that Russia is again spreading false information," Ukraine's General Staff said. "The missile hit a residential area and a playground."
President Volodymyr Zelensky commented on the attack, adding that Ukraine experiences "Russian strikes every day. Every day, people are killed. There is only one reason this continues: Russia does not want a ceasefire, and we see it. The whole world sees it."
Kryvyi Rih, Zelensky's hometown, remains a frequent target of Russian missile strikes. The city, with a population of about 660,000, is the second-largest in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast and lies roughly 70 kilometers (40 miles) from the front line.
Russia has continued missile and drone attacks across Ukraine despite U.S. efforts to negotiate a ceasefire. Kyiv argues that Moscow's strikes on civilian areas show it is not serious about peace.
The Kremlin rejected a 30-day ceasefire agreement reached by the U.S. and Ukraine in Jeddah on March 11, agreeing only to a limited truce on attacks against energy infrastructure and in the Black Sea.
Ukraine has already accused Russia of violating the energy ceasefire, while the future of the Black Sea truce remains uncertain as Moscow ties its implementation to the lifting of Western sanctions.
Kateryna Hodunova
