Pope Francis denounces attack on Kremenchuk's shopping mall, calls for dialogue

Pope Francis has denounced the attack on the shopping mall in the Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk. He said that he continues to pray for an end to the war in Ukraine and called for dialogue, Vatican News reported. Pope Francis stressed that he carries the "dear and tormented Ukraine" each day in his heart as the war-torn nation continues to be "scourged by barbaric attacks." 

"Every day I carry in my heart the dear and tormented Ukraine, which continues to be scourged by barbaric attacks, like the one that struck the Kremenchuk shopping centre," according to the statement issued by the Vatican. 

Pope Francis called for dialogue after praying the Angelus prayer on the 29 June Feast of Saints Peter and Paul." He called on the international community to come to the assistance of Ukrainians "who are suffering so much," as per the Vatican News report. The statement of Pope Francis comes after the Russian missile strikes at the shopping mall in Kremenchuk. Russia's attack on Kremenchuk mall has been condemned by Ukraine and G7 leaders. The attack on Kremenchuk mall comes amid the war between Russia and Ukraine continues for more than 120 days. 

Ukraine claims 18 people killed in Kremenchuk's shopping mall

Ukrainian State Emergency Services press officer Svitlana Rybalko told The Associated Press that 18 people have been killed in the attack on Kremenchuk's shopping mall. Svitlana Rybalko further said that the investigators found fragments of eight more bodies and a number of survivors were undergoing treatment. Ukrainian authorities have said that 20 people continue to remain missing and crews continue to carry out search operations through the rubble of the shopping mall.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that more than 1,000 people and workers were present inside the shopping mall when the attack took place in Kremenchuk, according to AP. In his late-night address on June 28, Zelenskyy termed the attack on a shopping mall in Kremenchuk as "one of the most defiant terrorist attacks" in Europe's history. Meanwhile, the Group of Seven (G7) leaders condemned the Russian missile strike on a shopping mall in Ukraine's Kremenchuk city on Monday, June 27. The G7 leaders stated that Russian President Vladimir Putin and those responsible need to be held accountable for their actions.

Russia dismisses reports about missile strike at Kremenchuk shopping mall

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova has denied reports about a Russian missile strike at a shopping mall in Kremenchuk, TASS reported. She termed the reports the "latest blatant provocation" by the Ukrainian regime. She said that Ukraine has been claiming that 1000 civilians were present in the mall and called it "fake news," as per the news report. She called on the West to question their regimes about the providing and storing weapons near a shopping mall. Maria Zakharova stated that Russia's missile strikes have destroyed the storage facilities of weapons. 

Image: AP

Inputs from AP