A security camera managed to capture the moment in which two guided bombs russian hit a hypermarket of construction materials in Kharkov. The episode, which occurred just minutes after 3:00 p.m., left at least six dead -two of them employees- and about 40 injured.
The video shows the parking lot of the Epitsentr chain store and in the background the establishment that is surprised by two consecutive attackswhich unleashed a major fire in the more than 15,000 square meters and completely destroyed the building. Immediately, the sky was covered with a thick black cloud and people in the parking lot were seen fleeing.
Firefighters and rescue teams soon arrived to assist the victims, put out the flames and try to rescue those nearby. 200 people which – it is estimated – would be in commerce. Just three hours later, however, Russia launched another attack, this time against a residential area in the center of Kharkivleaving others 12 injured.
President Volodimir Zelensky condemned these offensives, which exposed his tactics of target the civilian population, something that constitutes a war crime: “Russia launched another brutal attack against our Kharkiv (…), on Saturday, in broad daylight,” he wrote on his social networks. He then called on the West to increase defense systems shipments to be able to intercept and neutralize projectiles launched by the enemy, before they impact its territory.
“If Ukraine had enough modern air defense systems and fighter jets, Russian attacks like this would be impossible. And that is why we call on all leaders, all States: we need a significant improvement in air defense and sufficient capabilities to destroy Russian terrorists”, he added in his publication. For his part, the mayor of the city, Igor Terejov, denounced that “This is pure terrorism”.
The eve, USA announced the disbursement of a new military aid package by USD 275 million which includes ammunition for the HIMARS rocket launcher system, Javelin anti-tank systems, artillery projectiles, TOW guided missiles, short weapons, grenades, tactical vehicles, bulletproof vests and other weapons, although these defense pieces are not mentioned.
Likewise, this Saturday, the finance ministers of the G7 announced progress towards the agreement for the use of profits generated by Russian assets frozen in the old continent. “It is not an easy task but we are working very hard,” said the Italian Minister of Economy, Giancarlo Giorgetti, at the end of the meeting this Saturday in Stresa.
The day before, her Canadian counterpart was also encouraged by the progress made recently, saying that “I am really optimistic that we will do it.”
The initiative, which has a great boost from the United States, seeks to allocate these profits from the Russian money immobilized since February 2022 to meet kyiv’s most urgent needs and help soldiers confront enemy aggression. At the moment, the ministers of the Group of 7 are working to lay the foundations of the plan that, in June, will be debated during the summit that will bring together the leaders.
It is estimated that the total assets of the Central Bank of Moscow in the old continent are around USD 280,000 million.
(With information from EFE)
