Russian Strike Reportedly Kills 2, Wounds 15 in East Ukraine

A Russian strike on Wednesday on the city of Kramatorsk in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region killed two and wounded at least 15.

“Two people have already died, reports Oleksandr Honcharenko, the head of the Kramatorsk city military administration,” The Kramatorsk City Council page reported on Telegram.

“The Russians hit the city center. Two high-rise buildings, shops and cars were damaged,” regional governor Vadym Filashkin said.

AFP journalists at the scene saw what appeared to be two separate hits around a kilometer (0.6 miles) apart, both in residential areas.

Thick plumes of smoke were billowing from a partially destroyed 10-story block of flats.

Local resident Tatyana Rybakova was standing nearby, pointing at the place where her flat used to be on the eighth floor, now a gaping hole.

She said she had “crawled away from the window” after a loud bang, and was struggling to come to her senses. 

“I understand I have been left without a home: that I do understand,” she added.

The strike also destroyed a five-story apartment block and nearby restaurants.

Rescuers were leading an elderly woman, her face bloodied, out of the building, asking her if she had any relatives nearby.

Lyudmyla Shalayeva said she was cleaning her flat when she saw an explosion and barely had time to shelter in her hall.

“We’re scared every day,” she said. 

“But we didn’t expect any shelling right here at us... Who can expect that?”

The city lies around 20 kilometers (13 miles) from the front line, with fears over its fate rising as Russian forces continue their push into eastern Ukraine.