Ukraine war: Putin will be held responsible for shopping centre 'war crime', say G7 leaders
Monday's Russian missile strike on a crowded shopping centre in central Ukraine has been strongly condemned by the United Nations and the West. G7 leaders have labelled it a war crime and vowed to hold President Putin accountable.
Firefighters and soldiers are searching for survivors in the rubble of the building in Kremenchuk, following the attack which is known to have killed at least 18 people and injured dozens.
Early on Tuesday, family members of the missing lined up at a hotel across the street where rescue workers had set up a base.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called Russia the world's "largest terrorist organisation" in the wake of the deadly bombing. More than 1,000 people were inside when two Russian missiles slammed into the building, he said.
Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) major democracies, at a summit in Germany, said the attack was "abominable".
“Indiscriminate attacks on innocent civilians constitute a war crime. Russian President Putin and those responsible will be held to account,” they wrote in a joint statement tweeted by the German government spokesperson.
At Ukraine's request, the United Nations Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting in New York to discuss the attack.
The UN called the strike “deplorable”, stressing that civilian infrastructure “should never ever be targeted”, spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
At least 18 people were killed and 25 hospitalised, while about 36 were missing, said Dmytro Lunin, governor of the Poltava region, said on Tuesday. The number of dead is two more than Monday's overnight figure, and there are fears that more bodies may be found. Emergency service said on Monday that 59 people had been injured.
The missile strike unfolded as Western
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