Russian missile attack on Zaporizhzhia Oblast kills 7, including 3 children
Russian troops attacked the town of Vilniansk in Zaporizhzhia Oblast on June 29, killing seven people, including three children, and injuring 36, local officials have said.
Vilniansk, a town with a pre-war population of nearly 15,000, lies around 30 kilometers (18 miles) from the city of Zaporizhzhia.
Several explosions were reported after an air raid alert went off in the region.
Russia launched two missiles at Vilniansk, damaging a critical infrastructure facility, a store, and residential buildings, according to Zaporizhzhia Oblast Police. Commercial premises, houses and vehicles caught fire after the attack.
"(The attack took place) in broad daylight on a weekend in a place where people were spending their leisure time downtown. Without any military infrastructure," Governor Ivan Fedorov said shortly after the attack.
In a post on Telegram on June 30, he said three children and four adults were killed. Zaporizhzhia Oblast police later said 36 people had been injured.
There were eight children among the injured, the State Emergency Service reported on June 29.
The State Emergency Service said that the rescue operation was completed at around 8 p.m. local time.
"Our cities and communities suffer from such Russian strikes every day. But there are ways to overcome this—by destroying the terrorists where they are, eliminating Russian missile launchers, hitting them with long-range weapons, and increasing the number of modern air defense systems in Ukraine," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Vilniansk and other settlements in Zaporizhzhia Oblast suffer from daily Russian strikes due to their proximity to the front line.
Russian troops attacked seven settlements in Zaporizhzhia Oblast 314 times over the past day, the governor said.
Kateryna Denisova
