Official: Russia hits Nikopol, damages critical infrastructure

Mykola Lukashuk, head of the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Council, said on June 18 that the Russian army had heavily shelled the city of Nikopol over the past few days and damaged two critical infrastructure facilities.

The city, where about 107,500 citizens had lived before the Russian invasion, is now only 10 kilometers away from Russian troops based across the drying Kakhovka Reservoir.

“They are deliberately choosing targets, focusing their efforts on exacerbating the humanitarian crisis,” Lukashuk said.

According to the official, among the facilities affected by the Russian attack were also nine private residential buildings, two electricity grids and a gas pipeline.

On June 16, Russian forces bombed the city, killing an 81-year-old man and injuring a 78-year-old woman, according to Governor Serhii Lysak.

Nikopol is constantly shelled by Russian from the other side of the Dnipro River.