A two-wave Russian drone attack on a busy shopping center in the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih left at least 16 dead and 130 wounded, including 23 children. The second strike deliberately targeted rescue teams. Zelensky promised a response.

A Night of Horror in Zelensky's Hometown

Rescue workers in Ukraine labored through Friday night and into Saturday morning, sifting through the smoldering remains of a shopping mall in Kryvyi Rih, the central-southern city that is also the hometown of President Volodymyr Zelensky. The lethal attack, carried out with Russian drones, has left at least 16 people dead and 130 wounded, according to local authorities. At least nine people are still missing.

Zelensky condemned the assault as “cynical and despicable,” explaining that the strike was executed in two phases: the first to cause destruction, and the second—about thirty minutes later—targeting the emergency workers who had rushed to the scene. Verified footage by the BBC and geolocated by CNN shows a second drone slamming into the already-burning shopping center, producing a massive fireball.

A Deliberate Attack on Rescuers

The mayor of Kryvyi Rih, Oleksandr Vilkul, said the Russian drones flew at “extremely low altitudes” and called the attackers “animals.” He confirmed that several shops inside the mall caught fire, and that 29 of the injured are in serious condition, including a 14-year-old girl with traumatic brain injury and four other children.

Oleksandr Hanzha, governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region, reported that 23 children are among the wounded. During the night, 63 people were hospitalized, 29 of whom remain in intensive care. Search-and-rescue teams from seven Ukrainian regions, along with trained dogs, are combing the debris for the missing.

Key Numbers at a Glance

  • 16 confirmed dead
  • 130 wounded
  • 23 children among the wounded
  • 9 people still missing
  • 63 hospitalized, 29 in intensive care

Zelensky Vows Response and Pleads for More Interceptors

In a Telegram message, Zelensky warned that Ukraine “will definitely respond” to the attack. He also urged allies to provide more ballistic missile interceptors and to impose additional sanctions on Russia's military-industrial complex. Ukraine's Foreign Minister, Andrii Sybiha, stressed that “Russia must be denied both the capacity to produce these means of terror and the capacity to use them.”

Friday's mall attack came just one day after Russia launched a massive bombardment on Kyiv and its surrounding region, which killed at least 17 people. Early Saturday, new Russian strikes were reported in other regions: one person died in a warehouse fire in Kiev, a man was killed in Zaporizhzhia, and four people (including three children) died in Mykolaiv, according to local officials.

International Support and Context

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul was in Kyiv for the 35th anniversary of Ukraine's independence and expressed solidarity: “Putin will not achieve his goal this winter.” Meanwhile, Ukraine continues to intensify its strikes on Russian energy infrastructure, which it considers legitimate targets to fund the war.

The conflict, which began with Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, still sees Moscow controlling roughly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory. The international community is pressing for increased military aid to Ukraine, as the country braces for another difficult winter.

Sources: BBC, CNN, Ukrainian local authorities via the original report.