Ukrainian Drone Strike Claims 28 Lives in Occupied Kherson Resort Town During New Year’s Celebrations, Authorities Claim

At least 28 individuals lost their lives and many others were injured due to a Ukrainian drone strike on a town in southern Ukraine that is under occupation, according to officials installed by the Kremlin. They accused Kyiv of intentionally targeting civilians during New Year’s Eve festivities.

Vladimir Saldo, the governor of the annexed Kherson region appointed by Moscow, reported that drones hit a restaurant and a hotel in the Black Sea resort town of Khorly around midnight on Thursday, igniting a fire as people were celebrating. He noted that a child was among the deceased.

Saldo, who provided a briefing to President Vladimir Putin regarding the tragic event, shared photographs from the attack site, where several bodies could be seen trapped under the debris of a burned structure.

The Moscow Times successfully pinpointed the location of the images to a restaurant called Cafe Ukrayinska Khata in Khorly, situated next to Hotel Leo, which appears to have been closed since the onset of the full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Russia’s Investigative Committee has initiated a criminal investigation into the drone strike, categorizing it as an act of terrorism.

On Friday, the Ukrainian military refuted claims of targeting civilians in Khorly, asserting that its forces “comply with international humanitarian law and only engage enemy military positions.”

An unnamed source from Ukraine’s defense forces informed AFP that while the drone strike did occur early Thursday, it targeted a group of military personnel and was not aimed at civilians.