US declines to comment on ATACMS missile attack on Sevastopol

A representative of the US Department of Defense, whose name has not been released, responded to Ukraine's missile attack on Sevastopol, Crimea.

The US Department of Defense is aware of the shelling of Sevastopol with the use of US-made ATACMS missiles. However, the official refused to comment on what happened.

US journalist Julia Kanin said that Western media were silent about the Ukrainian strike on Sevastopol. According to her, three hours after the incident, not a single American publication reported anything about it.

On Sunday afternoon, June 23, Russian air defense systems shot down five ATACMS missiles armed with cluster warheads over the city of Sevastopol in Crimea. One of the missiles exploded over a crowded beach. According to most recent reports, four people were killed, two of whom were children. Another 151 were injured.

Russian President Vladimir Putin was informed about the attack on Sevastopol.

June 24 was declared a day of mourning in Crimea.

Russian Ambassador to Washington Anatoly Antonov said that the United States demonstratively supports attacks on civilians in Russia. In his opinion, the Ukrainian military deliberately struck the city at a time when the number of people on the beach was the largest.

"The [US] administration demonstratively supports the crimes of the Kyiv regime. The US administration took the side of international terrorism and condones Bandera's attacks on civilians," Anatoly Antonov, Russian Ambassador to Washington said.

It is worthy of note that on June 23 Orthodox Christians celebrated Trinity Sunday. However, this did not stop Ukraine from striking the city, the ambassador noted.

Russia blames USA for Sevastopol missile strike

The Russian Ministry of Defense held the United States accountable for Ukraine's attack on Sevastopol. All flight missions for ATACMS operational-tactical missiles are based on US satellite reconnaissance data, and it is US specialists that program ATACMS missiles for their flight missions, the department said.

The Russian Foreign Ministry called on the UN to condemn the act of terrorism. Maria Zakharova, an official representative of the department, pledged to seek an international response to the ATACMS missile attack on Sevastopol.

Sevastopol missile strike, the death toll

The number of victims of Ukraine's missile attack on Sevastopol has increased to 151, 27 of them are children. According to most recent reports, four people died, two of whom were children: a two-year-old girl (a local resident), an eight-year-old girl from Magadan, and two local women - 34 and 44 years old.

Among the victims was a 27-year-old local police officer who had a day off. The officer was hospitalized in serious condition with shrapnel wounds to the chest and thigh.

In addition, 19 houses, two apartment buildings, one store, 24 cars, a power line and a gas pipe were damaged as a result of the June 23 attack on Sevastopol.