Russian missile strike hits ArcelorMittal plant in Ukraine, two killed

A Russian missile strike on the ArcelorMittal steel plant in Ukraine’s Kryvyi Rih killed two people and injured 14 workers, according to reports, while damage to key production facilities forced the company to suspend part of its operations.

ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine’s largest steel plant, said the attack affected infrastructure supporting power generation and blast-furnace operations, disrupting production.

“As a result of the attack, key production facilities in the power generation and blast furnace sectors have been damaged, and the plant’s production processes have been partially halted,” the company said in a statement.

The facility, part of steel major ArcelorMittal, is located in Kryvyi Rih, the hometown of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Indian industrialist Lakshmi Mittal serves as executive chairman of its parent company.

Damage to the plant’s energy and blast-furnace infrastructure could have a significant impact on its operations, which depend heavily on a stable power supply and supporting industrial systems. The latest attack threatens to further weaken industrial activity in a region repeatedly targeted since Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Russia’s defence ministry reportedly said the Kryvyi Rih metallurgical plant was among the targets of its latest strikes, along with military-industrial facilities in Kyiv.

The attack came amid an escalation in long-range strikes by both countries on energy, industrial and military infrastructure.

Zelenskyy said Russia had launched more than 1,550 attack drones, nearly 1,560 guided aerial bombs and 62 missiles against Ukrainian cities over the previous week. He accused Russian forces of continuing to target civilian infrastructure.

Russia, meanwhile, claimed that its forces had intercepted 822 Ukrainian drones during the latest wave of attacks, as Ukraine intensified strikes inside Russian territory.

With IANS inputs