At least 17 civilians were killed in a Russian strike on a market in Kostiantynivka, a town in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region, on Wednesday (September 6th), the same day of a visit to Kyiv by the Secretary of State. American State, Antony Blinken.
CCTV footage shows a quiet shopping alley when suddenly the whistle of a projectile is heard, followed by a very loud explosion. A survivor testified to Agence France-Presse about the violence of the impact, which occurred at a time when the streets were very busy. “Everything was destroyed” and “the girls who were selling all died,” he said.
Rescuers searched the debris and transported some injured people for treatment in front of charred vehicles and stalls. The Ukrainian government reported 17 people killed, including a child, and 32 injured.
“The Russian terrorists deliberately targeted the market” when there were no military targets nearby, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky charged. Kostiantynivka, which had almost 70,000 inhabitants before the Russian offensive launched in early 2022, is about thirty kilometers from Bakhmout, the scene of a bloody battle with troops from Moscow for more than a year.
It is a “despicable attack” on “a war-torn community”, denounced the UN humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, Denise Brown. “Russia continues to terrorize the civilian population in Ukraine”, “intentional attacks against civilians are war crimes”, for his part commented a spokesperson for the European Union, while, for the German Minister for Foreign Affairs, Annalena Baerbock, it is “an attack on international law and humanity”. This new attack “underlines the need to continue to support the Ukrainian people in the defense of their territory”, for his part reacted the spokesperson for President Joe Biden, Karine Jean-Pierre.
Depleted uranium ammunition, controversial weapons
The shelling in Kostiantynivka took place hours after Mr. Blinken arrived in kyiv. He insisted that the United States stood “by the side of Ukraine”, announcing additional aid of one billion dollars (932 million euros) to the Ukrainians.
“Progress on the ongoing [Ukrainian military] counter-offensive has accelerated in recent weeks and this new aid will help give it new momentum,” said Blinken, on his fourth visit in Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022.
In Washington, the Pentagon revealed at the same time that 120 mm ammunition containing depleted uranium, effective against tanks and other armored vehicles, was going to be delivered to the Ukrainians.
Uranium is an extremely dense metal that does not deform when it comes into contact with its target. It is thus used in armor-piercing shells and bombs to make them more penetrating. These ammunition are in equipment in many armies, in particular American and Russian. If their use is not prohibited by international law, these weapons are controversial because of the toxic risks for soldiers and populations.
The United Kingdom had already announced several months ago its intention to deliver depleted uranium ammunition to Ukraine, an initiative then denounced by Moscow, which threatened to use it too. After this new announcement from the Pentagon, the Kremlin castigated Washington’s “inhumanity”.
“American aid is not charity. Today, thanks to our partners, Ukraine is holding back Russian aggression. We will never call for the deployment of US troops in Ukraine,” his Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Kuleba, told Blinken.