Dnipropetrovsk Regional Council Chairman Mykola Lukashuk on Friday evening shared new details of the Russian attack on a shopping centre in Kryvyi Rih, reposting a statement by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. According to the president, Russian strike drones attacked the site in two separate waves.
Zelenskyy said the second strike came roughly half an hour after the initial impact, when a fire had already broken out and emergency crews were working at the scene. He said the follow-up attack targeted rescue services responding to the first strike.
The president described the attack as “absolutely cynical and vile” and said such strikes amounted to terror. He also called on Ukraine’s international partners to increase pressure on Russia, arguing that attacks of this kind must be met with stronger and more tangible consequences.
Daycom’s analysis indicates that the statement adds an important detail to the previously established timeline. Authorities had already confirmed that the shopping complex was struck twice, but Zelenskyy has now explicitly said the second wave came after rescuers had begun responding to the first impact.
By Friday evening, five people had been confirmed killed in the attack. At least 52 others were injured, including six children. The casualty figures remained subject to revision as rescue teams and investigators continued working at the site.
Lukashuk shared Zelenskyy’s statement through his official Telegram channel together with photographs showing emergency crews operating around the damaged shopping complex. The images showed State Emergency Service personnel working directly outside and inside the affected area.
The circumstances of the second strike are now a central part of the investigation. Prosecutors have confirmed two drone strikes on the shopping centre and opened criminal proceedings over a suspected war crime. The final number of casualties is still being established.
