Search and rescue operations after Russia's attack on the "Epitsentr" hypermarket in Kharkiv have ended, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on May 29.
According to Klymenko, Russia's attack on the hypermarket on May 25 killed 19 people – 12 men and seven women, including a 17-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl. Fifty-four people were reportedly injured.
Russian forces reportedly struck the Kharkiv hypermarket with two guided aerial bombs. A third bomb, which had not unexploded, was later found at the site of the attack.
Sixteen relatives of people missing after the attack provided biological samples for examination, Klymenko said. A total of 100 tests were reportedly conducted.
"It was not easy. Special equipment was needed around the clock to search for those killed among the ashes, and they were quickly identified with the help of a DNA laboratory," the minister said.
Kharkiv and the surrounding oblast are particularly vulnerable to guided bomb attacks due to the proximity to the Russian border, as they are launched from aircraft in Russian airspace.
Russia has dropped nearly 10,000 guided bombs in Ukraine since the start of the year, according to Defense Minister Rustem Umerov.
Dominic Culverwell
(Updated: )
