The article reports on several devastating Russian attacks on civilians in Ukraine, resulting in significant loss of life and injuries. The attacks include:
1. **Hroza attack**: On October 5, 2023, a Russian Iskander ballistic missile was launched at a cafe near a playground, killing 59 civilians, including 36 women, 22 men, and an 8-year-old boy.
2. **Kryvyi Rih attack**: On April 4, 2025, a Russian cluster ballistic missile hit a residential area with a playground, restaurant, and apartment buildings, killing 20 people, including 9 children.
3. **Sumy attack**: On April 13, 2025, Russia launched “double-tap” strikes on Sumy’s city center using Iskander-M missiles, killing 35 local residents, including 2 children, and injuring over 100.
The article also highlights the use of cluster munitions in these attacks, which maximize the number of people killed. The Russian Defense Ministry has made false claims about the targets of these attacks, but security footage has shown that there were no military personnel present at the time of the strikes.
The article notes that these attacks have been condemned by European leaders as war crimes and evidence of Russia’s rejection of peace efforts. However, the U.S. administration has responded with condolences for Ukraine but no calls for increased pressure on Moscow.
Furthermore, the article mentions that some of the highest estimated civilian casualty tolls remain undocumented, particularly in the currently Russian-occupied city of Mariupol, where human rights organizations have reported thousands of civilian deaths during Russia’s siege in 2022.