Kyiv, Feb 4 (EFE).- A Russian strike killed five civilians and injured more than 30 in the town of Izium in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region, officials said on Tuesday.
Regional governor Oleh Syniehubov said the Russian forces launched a ballistic missile toward the town’s central district.
“The enemy has struck the central part of the city,” Sinegubov wrote on social media.
Rescuers found fives victims whose bodies were retrieved from the rubble.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the attack destroyed part of the city council building.
“As of now, we know there are casualties – twenty people have been injured. Tragically, five people have died. My condolences to the families and loved ones,” Zelenskyy wrote on X, posting a video that showed parts of the damaged town with at least two bodies covered in plastic bags.
“This brutality cannot be tolerated. Maximum pressure must be applied to Russia—through military force, sanctions, and diplomacy—to stop the terror and protect lives.”
Before the war, Izium had a population of approximately 45,000. Russian forces occupied the city early in their full-scale invasion before Ukrainian troops reclaimed it during their first counteroffensive in the fall of 2022.
After reclaiming the town, Ukrainian officials reported discovering mass graves and accused Russia of committing war crimes—allegations Moscow denies.
Since then, Izium has remained under Ukrainian control but, like other frontline towns, continues to face regular Russian attacks.
Kharkiv province in Ukraine’s northeast is a regular target of Russian missile and drone attacks from across the border or Russian-occupied territories. EFE
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