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attacks

Officials: Russian strike on Ukrainian shopping center kills 13

On Monday, two Russian missiles hit a shopping center in the city of Kremenchuk, Ukraine, killing at least 13 people and injuring 50, the regional governor said.

There were more than 1,000 people inside the building when the attack took place, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said. "It is impossible to even imagine the number of victims. ... It's useless to hope for decency and humanity from Russia," Zelensky wrote on the Telegram messaging app. Dmytro Lunin, governor of the Poltava region, called this "an act of terrorism against civilians."

Ukraine's air force said two long-range X-22 missiles hit the shopping center. Russia has been stepping up its strikes against Ukraine, with several missiles targeting Kyiv on Sunday. Vadym Denysenko, an interior ministry adviser, told Reuters he believes Russia could be motivated by three factors. "The first, undoubtedly, is to sow panic, the second is to ... destroy our infrastructure, and the third is to ... raise the stakes to get the civilized West to sit down again at the table for talks," Denysenko said.