The deputy head of the pro-Russian administration claims the attack targeted his office
© RIA
The Ukrainian military has struck the office of the pro-Russian administration in the southern city of Kherson, the local authorities claim. Kirill Stremousov, the deputy chair of the military-civilian administration, said the strike was meant specifically to take him out.
According to RIA Novosti, citing a correspondent on the ground, the attack left at least one person dead and another one injured. The report claims at least five missiles launched from a US-made HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) hit the seat of the pro-Russian administration.
One of the rockets hit the office of the local authorities, a member of the military-civilian administration, Ekaterina Gubareva, told journalists.
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She added that the only known death so far is that of a driver of one of the officials, though the latter was injured.
Gubareva called the strike a “craven act of terrorism.”
A video circulating on social media, which apparently depicts the immediate aftermath of the attack, shows people, in both civilian and military attire, fleeing from a building shrouded in clouds of dust and smoke. Part of the roof appears to be gone entirely.
According to local officials, emergency services are at the scene clearing debris. A second strike on the area, however, cannot be ruled out, the pro-Russian administration has warned, urging people to stay away from the damaged building.
The city of Kherson fell to Russian forces in early March, soon after Moscow launched its operation in Ukraine.
Late last month, pro-Kiev troops staged a counteroffensive in the region, which, according to the Kremlin, failed completely, with the Ukrainian military suffering heavy casualties.
