Russian Strike Kills 16, including Six Children, Ukraine Says

A Russian missile strike Friday on Kryvyi Rih, a city in central Ukraine, killed at least 16 people, including six children, and wounded more than 50, local officials said. It was the latest in a series of Russian attacks on urban centers in recent days, despite ongoing cease-fire talks, that have caused significant civilian casualties.

Serhii Lysak, the head of the Dnipropetrovsk region, which includes Kryvyi Rih, said on social media that the missile struck a residential neighborhood, with a playground nearby. Other officials warned the death toll could rise as rescuers continued to search the rubble for victims.

Russia’s defense ministry acknowledged the missile strike on Kryvyi Rih on Friday. It claimed that the missile had targeted a restaurant where Ukrainian commanders and Western military instructors were meeting, killing a total of 85 servicemen.

Moscow has long claimed that it only aims at military targets, although direct Russian strikes on civilian areas and facilities have often been documented by journalists and independent organizations.

Friday’s attack came as Russia appeared to have ramped up its attacks on civilian areas in recent weeks. Kryvyi Rih, the hometown of President Volodymyr Zelensky, was also struck on Wednesday in an attack that killed four people. On Thursday, a Russian drone attack on the eastern city of Kharkiv also killed four people, according to the city’s mayor.

The number of civilian casualties could not be independently verified.

The unusually high toll on Friday comes as both countries have engaged in cease-fire negotiations partly aimed at reducing the war’s impact on civilians. Ukraine and Russia have so far committed to halting attacks on energy infrastructure and in the Black Sea, but these truces have yet to be implemented, with both sides accusing each other of violations.