Ukraine war: at least two people killed after ‘massive’ Russian shelling in city of Sloviansk: mayor
- Russian forces struck a market in the city of Sloviansk in eastern Ukraine on Tuesday, killing two people and injuring seven others
- Sloviansk Mayor Vadym Lyakh said that the city had come under mass shelling and urged residents to stay in shelters
At least two people were killed and seven more injured Tuesday as Russian forces pounded the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk, local authorities said, as Moscow ramps up its assault on the Donbas region.
“Sloviansk! Massive shelling of the city. The centre, the north. Everyone, take shelter,” city mayor Vadim Lyakh wrote on Facebook.
Pavlo Kyrylenko, Governor of the Donetsk region, which includes Sloviansk, said on Telegram that two people had been killed and seven others injured in shelling which the mayor said targeted the city market.
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Agence France-Presse journalists in the city during the bombardment saw rockets hit the marketplace, leaving it ablaze as firefighters scrambled to put out the fire, while three other shells hit adjacent streets.
“Once again the Russians are intentionally targeting places where civilians assemble. This is terrorism pure and simple,” Kyrylenko said on Telegram, urging local people to evacuate.
It was not immediately clear what munitions had been used in the attack on the frontline city in the Donetsk region, or how many people had been at the market when it was hit.
Police said the market had been closing for the day, but that some shops had still been open.