Ukraine: Two civilians killed and ten injured in attacks in Kramatorsk

Two civilians were killed and ten wounded in Russian attacks with “cluster ammunition” on Kramatorsk in eastern Ukraine on Saturday afternoon, the governor of the Donetsk region, Pavlo Kirilenko, announced.

He said in a telegram that the attacks affected a park, a funeral goods store as well as a dozen residential buildings and two cars.

Kirilenko said, “More than a hundred countries ban the use of cluster munitions, but Russia continues to use these weapons, which release multiple small bombs and indiscriminately injure civilians.”

A few hours earlier, the mayor of Donetsk, Alexander Goncharenko, reported two people killed and 8 injured, including 3 seriously, as “the results of the bombardment of Kramatorsk with cluster munitions”.

“The reign of terror continues in Russia,” the city councilor quipped on his Facebook page.

AFP reporters heard about a dozen explosions shortly before 4:00 p.m. local time and saw smoke rising from a park in the city’s south.

Soon after, another dozen similar explosions were heard in a residential area about 2 km away from the first attack.

In the park, a woman died on the spot after being hit by shrapnel, AFP reporters said.

A taxi driver was seriously injured in a residential area.

“She had come to visit me for a while and was about to leave. I said goodbye to her, closed the door and a few seconds later I heard bangs,” Lina told AFP at her home.

The 46-year-old said, “I ran outside and saw she was lying on the ground near the fence, bleeding. We called an ambulance… It’s scary. I was lucky that I was with my daughter when it all happened.” Was inside with.” ,

In front of the entrance of the house where it was parked, the red taxi car was riddled with ammunition, the wheels were punctured and the windows were broken, AFP said.

It is the second time this week the city has been the target of Russian attacks. On Tuesday, a gunfight in the center left one dead and three injured and six residential buildings damaged.

On 1 February a bombing killed three people there.

A city of about 150,000 people before the Russian invasion was launched more than a year ago, Kramatorsk is near Bakhmout, the epicenter of fighting for months.

Regularly bombarded by the Russian military, Kramatorsk has played the role of a regional center since the capture of the city of Donetsk by Russian and pro-Russian forces in 2014.

In April 2022, a Russian missile struck the city’s train station, killing around 60 civilians who were trying to flee the area.

Russia has claimed the Donetsk region as its own territory following a so-called annexation referendum.

EPE/PRH/JUF/CHV