A Russian missile has hit a shopping centre in Ukraine which had more than 1,000 people inside on Monday.
The attack hit the central Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk in what appears to a renewed effort from Russia to conquer the neighbouring country.
Firefighters and soldiers were searching through debris for survivors after two missiles struck the shopping centre, killing at least 13 and wounding 40, Ukrainian officials said.
In a Telegram post, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the number of victims was “unimaginable”, and those the target posed “no threat to the Russian army”.
He said Russia was sabotaging “people’s attempts to live a normal life, which makes the occupiers so angry”.
The blast was so intense it reportedly blew out most windows in surrounding apartment blocks and the cars below.
A local resident Valentina Vitkovska told PA: “Everything is now destroyed. We are the only people left living in this part of the building. There is no power.
“I can’t even call to tell others what has happened to us.”
The Russian Armed Forces have been condemned by the international community since launching the invasion of Ukraine back in February, particularly due to its attacks on innocent Ukrainian civilians.
It has subsequently been accused of committing war crimes, although the Kremlin has repeatedly denied the claims.
This latest attack comes the day after Russia attacked the capital of Kyiv for the first time in weeks, as the Kremlin tries to ramp up its invasion efforts yet again.
It has so far failed to secure any significant victories more than five months into the invasion.
But Zelenskyy’s office confirmed at least six civilians had been killed at 31 injured in the last 24 hours all over the country.
As of June 23 – before this latest onslaught – the UN confirmed 4,677 Ukrainian civilians had been killed due to the invasion, with a further 5,829 injured.
Western nations on Monday pledged unwavering support for Ukraine in the war with Russia as the country endured another difficult day on the battlefront.
Leaders of the G7 major democracies, meeting in Germany, said they would keep sanctions on Russia for as long as necessary and intensify international pressure on president Vladimir Putin’s government and its ally Belarus.
“Imagine if we allowed Putin to get away with the violent acquisition of huge chunks of another country, sovereign, independent territory,” British prime minister Boris Johnson told the BBC.
The United States said it was finalising another weapons package for Ukraine that would include long-range air-defence systems – arms that Zelenskyy specifically requested when he addressed the leaders by video link on Monday.