5 Killed in Ukrainian Strike on Market in Occupied Zaporizhzhia, Pro-Kremlin Official Says

At least five people were killed and 18 others were wounded in an afternoon drone strike on a market in the partially occupied Zaporizhzhia region of southern Ukraine, Kremlin-installed officials said Friday, blaming the Ukrainian military for the deadly attack.

“We can now confirm that five local residents were killed as a result of this deliberate strike on the Tokmak marketplace,” Yevgeny Balitsky, the pro-Russia head of the Zaporizhzhia region, wrote in a post on Telegram.

Tokmak, located around 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of the city of Zaporizhzhia, had a pre-war population of just under 30,000.

Balitsky published photos of medics treating bloodied victims at the outdoor market.

“This was an attack against the civilian population, against people who came to buy groceries,” the pro-Russia official wrote. “Those who deliberately strike civilian targets are responsible for this tragedy.”

The Investigative Committee, Russia’s top investigative body, said it opened a criminal probe into the incident, which it is treating as an act of terrorism.

Ukraine did not immediately respond to the accusations.

Russian forces took control of Tokmak in March 2022 during the opening weeks of the full-scale invasion. The Kremlin claims to have annexed the broader Zaporizhzhia region, alongside three other Ukrainian territories.

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