Russian drone attacks Kharkiv shopping centre closed since 2022 – photos, video

On the morning of 28 August, Russian forces struck the Karavan shopping centre in Kharkiv with a drone. The centre has been closed since 2022. The attack caused a large fire.

Source: State Emergency Service in Kharkiv Oblast; Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov; Suspilne Kharkiv, a local branch of Ukraine's national public broadcaster

Quote from the State Emergency Service: "A jet-powered drone hit the building of a non-operational retail facility in the city's Kyivskyi district. Structural elements were partially destroyed and a fire broke out over an area of 150 sq m."

Details: The strike hit a shoe shop, setting equipment and furniture on fire. The fire has since been extinguished. Early reports indicate there have been no casualties or injuries.

Olena Arkhipova, a representative of the company that owns Karavan, told Suspilne that Russian forces have attacked the shopping centre more than 10 times since the beginning of the full-scale war. The centre has not been operating since 2022. Arkhipova also pointed out that the building was not used for military purposes.

Arkhipova said the management planned to rebuild the shopping centre, but after Russia's attack on the Epicentr home improvement superstore in Kharkiv in 2024, which killed 19 people, the restoration of Karavan was suspended for safety reasons.

Background: Russian forces struck an Epicentr home improvement superstore in Kharkiv with a jet-powered drone, killing a man and injuring five other people.

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