Russia places loss of life toll from Ukrainian strike on village at 27 | EUROtoday

Moscow says the loss of life toll from a Ukrainian drone strike in a Russian-occupied village in Ukraine’s Kherson area has risen to 27 – however Kyiv denied attacking civilian targets.

Svetlana Petrenko, spokeswoman of Russia’s major felony investigation company, the Investigative Committee, mentioned a drone strike on a café and resort within the village of Khorly, the place no less than 100 civilians have been celebrating New Year’s Eve in a single day into Thursday, killed 27 individuals, together with two kids, and 31 in hospital.

A felony probe on the fees of finishing up an act of terrorism has been opened, Petrenko mentioned.

Kyiv denied attacking civilians. Spokesman of Ukraine’s General Staff, Dmytro Lykhovii, informed Ukraine’s public broadcaster Suspilne that Ukrainian forces “adhere to the norms of international humanitarian law” and “perform strikes solely in opposition to Russian army targets, amenities of the Russian gas and vitality sector, and different lawful targets.”

Lykhovii mentioned an express record of targets that the Ukrainian military struck on New Year’s Eve didn’t embrace strikes on occupied components of the Kherson area.

He additionally famous that Russia has repeatedly used disinformation and false statements to disrupt the continuing peace negotiations.

The Associated Press couldn’t independently confirm claims made concerning the assault.

Russia’s accusations in opposition to Ukraine come amid a US-led diplomatic push to finish the almost four-year battle in Ukraine. Earlier this week, Moscow alleged that Kyiv launched a long-range drone assault in opposition to a residence of Russian President Vladimir Putin in northwestern Russia in a single day from Sunday to Monday.

Kyiv has referred to as the allegations of an assault on Putin’s residence a ruse to derail ongoing peace negotiations, which have ramped up in current weeks on either side of the Atlantic.

In his New Year’s deal with, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy mentioned {that a} peace deal was “90% ready” however warned that the remaining 10%, believed to incorporate key sticking factors corresponding to territory, would “determine the fate of peace, the fate of Ukraine and Europe, how people will live.”

Elsewhere in Ukraine, Russia carried out what native authorities referred to as “one of the most massive” drone assaults at Zaporizhzhia in a single day.

At least 9 Russian drones struck the town, damaging dozens of residential buildings and different civilian infrastructure, head of the regional administration, Ivan Fedorov, wrote on Telegram on Friday. There have been no casualties, the official mentioned.

Overall, Russia fired 116 long-range drones at Ukraine final evening, in accordance with Ukraine’s Air Force, which mentioned that 86 drones have been intercepted, whereas 27 extra have reached their targets.

The Russian Defense Ministry reported Friday that its air defenses intercepted 64 Ukrainian drones in a single day over a number of Russian areas.

Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of Russia’s Belgorod area on the border with Ukraine, on Friday additionally accused Ukrainian forces of finishing up a missile strike on the town of Belgorod. Two girls have been hospitalized with accidents, Gladkov mentioned. The strike shattered home windows in a number of residential buildings and broken an unspecified “commercial” facility and a variety of vehicles, in accordance with the official.