Russian, Ukrainian Attacks Kill Five After Deadly Shopping Mall Drone Strike

Russian drone and missile strikes killed at least three people in Ukraine on Saturday, August 22, while Ukrainian drone attacks killed two children in Russia’s Krasnodar region.

These events follow a Russian drone strike on a shopping center in Kryvyi Rih, central Ukraine, on Friday, which killed 16 people and wounded 130, including 23 children. Nine people remain missing from the shopping center attack. In Ukraine, one person died and another was wounded when ballistic missiles hit railway infrastructure in Kyiv overnight.

Russia’s Defense Ministry stated its forces hit a locomotive depot. A separate Russian ballistic missile strike on the Kyiv region killed one person Saturday afternoon. Russian drone strikes also killed one person overnight in a village in the Zaporizhzhia region, and wounded three in an attack on a minibus in the regional capital. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul condemned Russia's escalating drone and missile assault during his visit to Kyiv, stating Russian attacks deliberately target civilian infrastructure.

In Russia, Governor Veniamin Kondratyev reported two children killed and two adults wounded in an Ukrainian drone strike on the Sea of Azov port town of Yeysk in the Krasnodar region. A fire broke out at an unnamed facility at the town's port. Ukrainian drones also struck an industrial facility and a warehouse belonging to online retailer Ozon in the Samara region.

Governor Vyacheslav Fedorishchev said several people were wounded. Ukraine's military claimed it struck the Novokuibyshevsk refinery, causing a fire. Ozon, Russia's second-largest online retailer, confirmed work at its logistics center in Chapayevsk halted due to the strike, which caused injuries. This marks the first strike on Ozon. Two people died and 13 were wounded in Ukrainian attacks in the Belgorod region, and four were wounded in Bryansk.

Russia's Defense Ministry intercepted 457 Ukrainian drones between Friday night and Saturday morning. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the Kryvyi Rih shopping center attack as a double-tap strike, with a second wave targeting emergency responders. He called the attack an act of barbarism and terrorist acts, promising a response. The fire at the shopping center spread across 9,000 square meters.