Two Russian ballistic missiles hit central Sumy on Sunday, killing 34 and injuring 117 in Ukraine’s deadliest attack of the year, officials said.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy demanded a tough international response against Moscow over the attack, which came with U.S. President Donald Trump’s push to rapidly end the war struggling to make a breakthrough.
Dead bodies were strewn on the ground in the middle of a city street near a destroyed bus and burnt-out cars in a video posted by Zelenskyy on social media.
‘Scoundrels’
“Only scoundrels can act like this, taking the lives of ordinary people,” he said, noting that the attack had come on Palm Sunday when some people were going to church.
“You know, the people who are fighting against us always say that they are Orthodox (Christian) believers, that they believe in God, but we have experienced first-hand terrorism today. I have no words,” said 27-year old PhD student Yevhen, a local resident who declined to give his surname.
The leaders of Britain, Germany and Italy condemned the attack.
“These attacks show just what Russia’s supposed readiness for peace is worth,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz wrote on social media.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in a statement expressed condolences for the victims and said the attack was a “tragic reminder of why President Trump and his Administration are putting so much time and effort into trying to end this war.”
‘Many Details Forgotten’
Zelenskyy, in an interview with CBS News’ “60 Minutes” aired on Sunday, urged Trump to visit Ukraine.
“Please come to see people, civilians, warriors, hospitals, churches, children, destroyed or dead,” Zelenskyy said in a video clip the program posted on social media.
During the interview, which took place on Friday, Zelenskyy was asked if the United States had Ukraine’s back.
After a brief pause, Zelenskyy replied: “Even in this pause of mine, there’s a problem, because I want to answer truthfully and quickly that the United States is our strategic, strong partner,” he said. “But the pause is doubt. I don’t doubt that the people of America are with us, but in a long war, many details are forgotten.”
He called on the United States to provide forces as part of an international peacekeeping effort, specifically asking for Washington to help protect Ukrainian airspace with aircraft.
Under Trump’s administration, U.S. officials have held separate rounds of talks with Kremlin and Kyiv officials to try to move toward a cessation of hostilities in Ukraine.
Three Days Of Mourning
Russian authorities did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Russia denies targeting civilians but thousands have been killed and injured in its invasion of Ukraine.
A separate Russian drone attack injured five people in the Black Sea port city of Odesa late on Sunday and damaged a medical facility, regional officials said.
The Sunday attacks followed a missile strike in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, Zelenskyy’s hometown and far from the ground war’s front lines in the east and south, this month that killed 20 people, including nine children.
Sumy, with a population of around a quarter of a million and located just over 25 km (15 miles) from the Russian border, became a garrison city when Kyiv’s forces launched an incursion into Russia in August.
Sumy’s acting mayor, Artem Kobzar, announced three days of mourning for the victims starting from Monday.
The people who were caught in Sunday’s strike were out on the street or inside cars, public transport and buildings when the missiles hit, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said.
“Deliberate destruction of civilians on an important church feast day,” he wrote.
Andriy Yermak, Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, said the missiles contained cluster munitions. “The Russians are doing this to kill as many civilians as possible,” he said.
Information Leak?
Maryana Bezuhla, an outspoken Ukrainian lawmaker known for her sharp public criticism of military commanders, suggested on the Telegram app that the attack had taken place due to information about a gathering of soldiers leaking out.
Reuters was not able to verify that information, and Bezuhla did not post evidence.
Local resident Pavriz Manakhov told Reuters that he had not seen soldiers in the area.
“We live in the city center, there is no military base, there are no soldiers here,” Manakhov said.
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and currently holds nearly 20% of the neighbouring country’s territory in the east and south. Russian forces have been slowly advancing in the east.
Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Kyiv was “sharing detailed information about this war crime with all of our partners and international institutions.”
ICC Investigations
The International Criminal Court in The Hague, which Ukraine officially joined this year, is conducting investigations into high-profile cases of alleged war crimes in the conflict.
The U.S. in late March said it reached agreement with Russia and Ukraine on two ceasefire accords, including one that would ban strikes on each other’s energy infrastructure. Both sides have repeatedly accused each other of breaking the moratoriums.
On Sunday, Russia’s defence ministry accused Ukraine of having carried out two attacks on Russian energy infrastructure over the previous day.
Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy, held talks with Putin on Friday in St. Petersburg on the search for a Ukraine peace deal. Trump told Russia to “get moving.”
(With inputs from Reuters)
