Devastating Russian missile strike on civilian convoy leaves 23 dead and dozens injured including four-year-old girl
30 September 2022, 10:15 | Updated: 30 September 2022, 10:28
Dozens of people have been killed or wounded, including a four-year-old girl, after a horrific Russian missile strike on a convoy of civilian traffic.
Authorities in Ukraine said 23 people had been killed and 35 were injured in the attack on the outskirts of Zaporizhzhia city.
Ukraine's minister of internal affairs posted photos of the attack which showed bloodied bodies strewn across the ground between totalled cars and witnesses said a missile had left a crater.
Anton Gerashchenko said: "Russian army shelled civilian humanitarian column at exit of Zaporizhzhia.
"23 people dead, 35 wounded, incl. 4y.o. girl.
"People gathered to go to occupied territories (for relatives/documents). There is only 1 entrance point & columns leave every morning - strike was deliberate."
The damaged cars, which were riddled with shrapnel and caked in dirt from the attack, were full of blankets, suitcases and belongings.
A driver's body was seen leaning towards the passenger side while his left hand still held on to the steering wheel, Reuters said.
Plastic sheets were placed over a woman and young man’s bodies in a car ahead, while a dead cat was next to the young man in the back of the car.
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Nataliya told the news agency: "We were returning to my mother who is 90 years old. We have been spared. It's a miracle."
The region is contested between Ukraine and Russia, while Zaporizhzhia city is in Ukrainian hands.
The wider Zaporizhzhia region is set to be annexed by Russia, alongside Luhansk, Donetsk and Kherson, even though Moscow's forces are not in control of the entire area.
The Kremlin ran sham referendums that saw soldiers march around taking votes, and as expected, Russia tried to claim overwhelming favour for being taken over by a country that has spent months shelling their homes and committing atrocities.
President Putin is set to sign a decree on Friday that will see Russia capture about 15% of Ukraine, the largest annexation of land by force in Europe since the Second World War.
