A Russian drone attack on a market in southern Ukraine has killed five people and injured 21, including a 14-year-old girl, according to the prosecutor general's office.
The attack occurred at around 09:50 local time in Nikopol, situated just across the Dnipro river from regions occupied by Russian forces since the onset of their full-scale invasion.
Visual evidence from the regional prosecutor's office depicts the devastation: market kiosks smashed, debris of metal, glass, and food scattered across the ground.
This strike follows a grim trend, as at least 15 civilians lost their lives to drone and missile attacks across the nation previously on Friday.
Conversely, Russia reported casualties from a Ukrainian drone and missile strike on the southern city of Taganrog, claiming one death and several injuries from that attack.
According to local authorities, the strike in Taganrog resulted in a fire at a logistics company's facility.
A Ukrainian Defense Ministry official attributed the rising casualties to Russian air defense operations, while Ukraine is also reported to have targeted a factory in Togliatti believed to produce military components for Russia.
Nikopol has frequently been under fire, leading to the exodus of nearly half its 100,000 residents. However, the latest drone assault occurred in a busy market area on a Saturday morning, substantially raising the casualty count.
Moreover, two additional injuries were reported due to a second strike in the same vicinity, prompting investigations into the attacks as potential war crimes.
Despite President Zelensky's offer of a truce for the Easter holidays, Moscow has not engaged with this proposition.
In another escalation, almost 300 drones were launched against Ukraine overnight, affecting areas including Kharkiv and the northern Sumy region, with Moscow claiming to have intercepted 85 Ukrainian drones.
The pattern of daytime assaults by Russian forces, which were previously uncommon, appears to be on the rise amid stalled diplomatic efforts to conclude the ongoing war.
