Three killed in Russian attack on boats rescuing civilians, Ukrainian officials claim

Authorities in Ukraine have reported that three people were killed while 10 others suffered varying degrees of injury after Russian forces shelled three rescue boats that had been deployed to evacuate civilians in the southern region of Kherson on Sunday, June 11.

The boats were despatched to communities that have become flooded after the Nova Kakhovka Dam was destroyed on June 6 in one of the latest incidents in the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

Both Kyiv and Moscow have accused each other of being responsible for the destruction of the dam, which sits on the Dnipro River.

Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Kherson governor Oleksander Prokudin said Russian forces opened fire on the boats while these were engaged in rescue operations on the Dnipro’s eastern bank.

The rescued civilians included elderly people and those with limited mobility, Mr Prokudin added.

Russia has denied allegations that it has been targeting civilians since the start of the conflict in February 2022.