Ukraine mourning after attack on southern town

By Stefan J. Bos

The horrors of Europe's deadliest conflict since World War Two are revealed again.

Witnesses saw bodies stretched out under picnic blankets in a park in the southern town of Vilniansk.

There are deep craters in the blackened earth next to the charred, twisted remains of a building that authorities said was hit by Russian missiles.

"It's now a ruined place. It used to be a building that included a barbecue restaurant. They made Ukrainian fast food there," recalled Vilniansk resident Oleksandr. "There was also a hairdresser. But that's all gone. I understand that many people died here."

Local Governor Ivan Fedorov said that three children were among the seven dead.

Besides those killed, at least 36 people were reportedly wounded in Saturday evening's devastating attack, which prompted local authorities to declare a day of mourning on Sunday.

Massive damage

Fedorov clarified that the Russian strike damaged one or more shops, residential buildings, and an unspecified "critical infrastructure" facility in Vilniansk.

The town had a population of around 14,300 before Russia's all-out invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

In the aftermath of the Vilniansk attack, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on Kyiv's Western partners to bolster its air defenses and long-range munitions to deter Russian attacks.

However, he also expressed hope, thanking the Vatican for helping with the release by Russia of 10 prisoners over the weekend, including two priests. "Today, I also attended the national prayer breakfast and personally congratulated the priests released from captivity Bohdan Heleta and Ivan Levytskyi. I also thanked all the representatives of church and religious communities for supporting our people, our communities, for helping our state in this extremely difficult time of war," he added.    

Yet the devastation in Vilniansk underscored that the war isn't over. The town is in Zaporizhzhia region, less than 30 kilometers or 20 miles from the local capital and north of the front lines, as Russian forces continue to occupy part of the province.

In the aftermath of the Vilniansk attack, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on Kyiv's Western partners to bolster its air defenses and long-range munitions to deter Russian attacks.

Russia continues to stretch out Ukrainian forces in several areas along the 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front. Moscow has stepped up airstrikes in a bid to drain Ukraine's resources, often targeting energy facilities and other vital infrastructure.

Donetsk attacked

In Ukraine's war-torn eastern Donetsk region, authorities said eight civilians died and 14 more suffered wounds on Saturday and overnight as near-daily shelling continues in much of the province.

Shelling reportedly also killed one civilian and wounded five more over the same period in the southern Kherson region.

Officials also said that four people were wounded in the Kharkiv province in the northeast. It was the site of fierce battles in recent months as Russia launched a cross-border push that threatened Ukraine's second-largest city.

Yet in Russia itself, the Russian Defense Ministry on Sunday claimed its forces overnight shot down three dozen Ukrainian drones over six regions in Russia's southwest.

Debris from one drone reportedly fell on a village in the Kursk region, blowing out windows and damaging roofs and fences. In the city of Lipetsk, further north, a drone was apparently shot down as it appeared to target the industrial zone.

There were no casualties in either case, but the underscored that Ukraine is increasingly hitting targets inside Russia as it desperately tries to halt a full-scale Russian invasion now in its third year.