Russia has accused the US of deliberately targeting Russian civilians after US missiles hit a Crimean beach near Sevastopol, killing five, including three children, and wounding over 124 more on June 23, according to Russian authorities.
Videos on social media show sunbathing holiday makers scrambling for cover in panic as the missiles hit the crowded beach, a popular Russian holiday destination.
The strike involved five US-supplied Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missiles, according to the Russian Defence Ministry, that have been used many times previously to target Russian military facilities on the peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014. Russian officials are blaming the USA, arguing that firing long-range ATACMS requires American military coordination.
The attack is being seen by many commentators as Ukraine’s retaliation for recent multiple Russian missile strikes on the eastern city of Kharkiv using powerfulglide bombs that has led to multiple casualties among civilians. A similar video released the day before shows a powerful explosion in the heart of Kharkiv that killed a dozen civilians.
The ATACMS missiles’ target remains a matter of speculation. Some analysts point to a nearby Soviet NIP-16 Space Tracking and Deep Space Communication Centre near the city of Yevpatoria on the Black Sea coast that is a nuclear early-warning station. Others claimed the bus station, or a nearby police hospital were the intended targets, while many Russian politicians have simply said the beach and its holiday makers were the intended victims.
“Both strikes look like indiscriminate strikes directed at military targets in populated civilian areas in daylight resulting in civilian casualties,” Ivan Katchanovski, a scholar that specialises in Ukraine, said in a post.
The Russian Embassy in the UK was more specific saying that the missiles were, “a terrorist missile strike by five US-made ATACMS operational-tactical missiles equipped with cluster warheads was deliberately delivered at Sevastopol.”
“The American specialists input all flight tasks in the US-made ATACMS operational-tactical missiles on the basis of data of the US satellite reconnaissance,” the Russian UK embassy said, one of the Kremlin’s leading social media channels for the English-speaking world. “That is why Washington is mostly responsible for the deliberate missile strike at peaceful residents of Sevastopol by delivering this weaponry to Ukraine, as well as the Kyiv regime, from the territory of which the strike was launched.”
“Such actions are not going to be left unanswered,” the embassy warned.
The Russian Defence ministry claimed that four of the missiles were armed with cluster munitions warheads and were intercepted by air defence systems, coming down on the beach. The ammunition of the fifth detonated mid-air. Russian state television aired footage showing people fleeing from a beach, some being carried off on sun loungers.
Missile fragments reportedly fell shortly after noon on the north side of Sevastopol, where locals were on holiday.
The incident provoked a strong outburst from Russian authorities, who promised it would not pass “unanswered.”
'This deliberate missile attack on the civilians of Sevastopol is primarily Washington's responsibility, which provided these weapons to Ukraine, and also Kyiv, from whose territory the strike was launched,' the Defence Ministry stated, Reuters reports.
The United States started supplying Ukraine with ATACMS missiles earlier this year. These missiles have a range of 300 kilometres and have been used to force Russia to withdraw most of its navy and air force assets from the peninsula.
