On the evening of 27 June 2023, at around 7:30 p.m., Russia launched two Iskander ballistic missile strikes against civilian buildings in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The main target was a pizza restaurant which housed up to 80 customers and staff at that time. Thirteen people were killed, including Ukrainian novelist

Victoria Amelina Viktoriia Yuriivna Amelina ( uk, Вікторія Юріївна Амеліна; 1 January 1986 – 1 July 2023), later known as Victoria Amelina, was a Ukrainian novelist. She was the author of two novels and a children's book, a winner of th ...

, a 17-year-old girl, a pair of 14-year old twin sisters and Ian Tortorici, a US Marine Corps veteran, while 61 were injured in the explosions. Another missile hit a village on the outskirts of Kramatorsk, injuring five more people. The restaurant was popular among locals, soldiers,

foreign correspondents A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is usually a journalist or commentator for a magazine, or an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, locati ...

and aid workers. Among the injured were Colombian novelist and journalist

Héctor Abad Faciolince Héctor Abad Faciolince (born 1958) is a Colombian novelist, essayist, journalist, and editor. Abad is considered one of the most talented post-Latin American Boom writers in Latin American literature. Abad is best known for his bestselling nove ...

and his friend Sergio Jaramillo Caro. Kramatorsk was 24 kilometers from the battle front at the time.

Responses

The attack occurred shortly after the conclusion of the

Wagner Group rebellion On 23 June 2023, the Wagner Group, a Russian private military company, engaged in a major uprising against the Russia under Vladimir Putin, Government of Russia. It marked the climax of the Wagner Group–Russian Ministry of Defence conflict, W ...

in Russia, which threatened the authority of President Vladimir Putin.

High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (HR/VP) is the chief co-ordinator and representative of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) within the European Union (EU). The position is currently held b ...

Josep Borrell and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the attack as "Russian

terror Terror(s) or The Terror may refer to: Politics * Reign of Terror, commonly known as The Terror, a period of violence (1793–1794) after the onset of the French Revolution * Terror (politics), a policy of political repression and violence Emoti ...

against Ukrainian civilians". The Ukrainian army later arrested a man suspected of having spied on the vehicles parked outside the restaurant and forwarding the video to the Russian military intelligence. US President Joe Biden condemned the attack and said that Putin became a " pariah around the world". Denise Brown, UN's Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine, issued a statement describing the attack as "another example of heinexcusable level of suffering Russia’s invasion is inflicting on the people of Ukraine. International humanitarian law protects civilians and civilian infrastructure, and everything must be done to minimize or avoid civilian harm, including by verifying targets". PEN Ukraine and Truth Hounds referred to the strike as a war crime, with the latter being the organization Ukrainian writer and victim of the strike

was a war crimes documentarian for. PEN Ukraine stated that "They clearly knew that they were shelling a place with many civilians inside".

Sky News Sky News is a British free-to-air television news channel and organisation. Sky News is distributed via an English-language radio news service, and through online channels. It is owned by Sky Group, a division of Comcast. John Ryley is the hea ...

international affairs editor Dominic Waghorn stated that, since a high-precision missile was used to carry out the strike, "they probably knew exactly what they were firing at", and that "this is an alleged war crime". France's Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs

Catherine Colonna Catherine Colonna ( (born 16 April 1956) is a French diplomat and politician who serves as Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs in the government of Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne since 20 May 2022. Colonna previously served as Ambassad ...

condemned the strike and called it a war crime, and so did

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

's Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

Victims

Pizzeria employees: # Andriichuk Kateryna Andriivna, born (18 years old; cook) # Bashkeeva Zoryana Valeriivna, born (24 years old; waitress) # Yevgenia Oleksandrivna Golovchenko, born (; dryer) # Mykyta Valentynovich Dolgopol, born (; senior cook) # Zakharov Roman Ruslanovich (20 years old, waiter) # Valeriya Ruslanivna Simonnik, born (; dryer) # Titoruk Artur Volodymyrovych, born (28 years old; administrator) Pizzeria visitors: # Twin sisters Yulia and Anna Aksenchenko, born (; schoolchildren) # Amelina Viktoriya Yuriivna, born (; writer) # Orlovsky Artur (30 years old, entrepreneur) # Artem Olegovich Suhoviy (22 years old, combat paramedic 1 ShB 3 OShBr) # Ian Tortorici, call sign "Frank" (23 years old, volunteer International Legion, former US Marine)

Gallery

File:Kramatorsk after Russian missile strike, 2023-06-27 (01-01).jpg File:Kramatorsk after Russian missile strike, 2023-06-27 (01-03).jpg File:Kramatorsk after Russian missile strike, 2023-06-27 (01-05).jpg

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kramatorsk June 2023 events in Ukraine Airstrikes during the Russian invasion of Ukraine Attacks on buildings and structures in Ukraine Attacks on buildings and structures in 2023 War crimes during the Russian invasion of Ukraine Russian war crimes in Ukraine Airstrikes conducted by Russia Kramatorsk Attacks on restaurants in Europe Donetsk Oblast in the Russian invasion of Ukraine

Responses

Victims

Gallery

See also

References