Russian Strike Hits City Center in Northern Ukraine, Kyiv Says

A Russian missile slammed into the middle of Chernihiv in northern Ukraine on Saturday, killing no less than 5 individuals and injuring dozens extra, together with 11 youngsters, Ukrainian officers mentioned.

The Ukrainian Interior Ministry launched graphic photos of the aftermath of the strike, which it mentioned befell at 1 p.m., simply as individuals had been leaving church. They had been celebrating a holy day when the explosion tore by the primary sq..

“A Russian missile hit the heart of Chernihiv,” President Volodymyr Zelensky mentioned in an announcement. “A square, a university, and a theater. Russia turned an ordinary Saturday into a day of pain and loss.”

Mr. Zelensky mentioned the assault ought to once more remind the world that it wants to face united towards “Russian terror,” including, “For life to win, Russia must lose this war.”

The assault got here hours after the Kremlin mentioned that President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia had traveled to the southern Russian metropolis of Rostov-on-Don to satisfy with navy commanders, in his first publicized go to to the navy hub because it was seized in June in a short-lived riot led by the Wagner mercenary chief.

The Kremlin didn’t say when Mr. Putin visited. He met with the chief of the Russian navy, Gen. Valery V. Gerasimov, the Kremlin mentioned. General Gerasimov and Sergei Okay. Shoigu, the Russian protection minister, had been the first targets of criticism from Yevgeny V. Prigozhin, the top of the Wagner non-public navy firm, within the lead-up to to an rebellion that plunged the nation into disaster and raised questions on Mr. Putin’s management.

The go to, which appeared to happen at night time, comes as Mr. Putin continues an energetic schedule of public appearances, aiming to undertaking a way of authority within the days for the reason that mutiny and amid the warfare in Ukraine. Russia’s troops have largely succeeded in holding the road towards Ukrainian forces in Kyiv’s Western-backed counteroffensive, a navy achievement he has praised commonly in public feedback.

It can be an extra signal that Mr. Putin is sticking by his prime generals. At the identical time, the highest normal seen as closest to Mr. Prigozhin, Gen. Sergei Surovikin, nonetheless has not been seen in public for the reason that mutiny.

Rostov-on-Don is dwelling to the headquarters of Russia’s Southern Military District, a strategic command heart for Mr. Putin’s warfare in Ukraine. Mr. Prigozhin briefly took management of the headquarters earlier than his fighters started advancing towards Moscow.

The Russian state news company Tass mentioned that Mr. Putin had repeatedly visited town and the command publish there, together with in March, when he additionally visited the occupied Ukrainian metropolis of Mariupol.

Separately on Saturday, Russia’s navy mentioned it had shot down a Ukrainian missile aimed on the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014. An S-200 surface-to-air missile was shot down by air protection, and there have been no accidents or injury, Russia’s Defense Ministry mentioned. The declare couldn’t be independently verified.

Every week earlier, Moscow mentioned it had shot down two missiles fired by Ukraine on the strategically important Kerch Strait Bridge connecting Crimea to Russia. Ukrainian officers, whereas indirectly confirming the assault, have mentioned they might proceed finishing up assaults on the peninsula and the bridge as a part of Kyiv’s efforts to focus on the Russian navy’s logistical provide strains.

In their slow-moving counteroffensive within the nation’s east, Ukrainian forces have been aiming to succeed in the Sea of Azov and drive a wedge into the land bridge connecting Russia and Crimea, a essential hyperlink for the Russian navy’s provide routes.

Here’s what else is going on within the warfare:

• Zelensky Visit: Mr. Zelensky arrived on Saturday in Sweden, the place he mentioned in an announcement that he would proceed to to work on bilateral cooperation, “in particular in the defense industry, the European integration of Ukraine and common security in the Euro-Atlantic space.”

  He added that Ukraine’s supported Sweden “on its way into NATO.” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, an alliance member that had been blocking Sweden’s entry, expressed help in July for the Nordic nation’s membership, however mentioned that it nonetheless wanted to take extra steps to earn the help of the Turkish Parliament.

• Camp David Summit: In his summit with the leaders of Japan and South Korea, President Biden counseled Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan for his nation’s help of Ukraine. “Imagine if we had done nothing?” the president mentioned. If the world had not come to Kyiv’s assist, “What signal would that send to China about Taiwan?” Mr. Biden requested, hinting at U.S. officers’ concern in regards to the prospect of China taking navy motion towards Taiwan.

Paul Sonne contributed reporting.