“A woman ran by, cradling a bloody baby: the world press about the shelling of “Okhmatdyt”
A woman ran past, cradling a bloody baby. This is not a scene from a horror movie, but a reality that happened in the “Okhmatdit” children’s hospital after a Russian missile strike. The world press testifies to the incredible pain and suffering experienced by patients and medical staff. The reports of journalists from Italy, Great Britain, Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland and other countries reflect a brutal reality that cannot be ignored.
The Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera publishes the report of its own correspondent who arrived at the scene and spoke with the victims of the attack.
“It seems impossible to us that the Russians could bomb sick children, they are animals, we must fight them by all means”
“Putin is using a strategy of attacking hospitals with the obvious intention of weakening us. This is called psychological warfare.”
“We come from a village near Kherson. The Russians devastated our homes. Now we hope that the doctors will soon tell us where we can go with the child.”
The publication quotes the parents of young patients who underwent complex operations before the Russian attack.
The British quality publication The Guardian witnesses the evacuation of many children with cancer, barely clothed and with medical tubes attached to them. The publication emphasizes that this deadly attack by Russia was not the first of its kind – according to the International Rescue Committee, more than 1,700 medical facilities have been affected since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.
The leading German publication Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung emphasizes that seriously ill children were among the victims, and writes:
After the recent Russian missile attacks on Ukrainian cities, which killed dozens of people, Moscow once again found itself in front of the international community. The newspaper writes about the indignation of the world and at the same time notes that there will be no unanimous condemnation of the strikes on Ukraine, since Russia has the right of veto in the UN Security Council.
The Czech publication Denik N publishes the report of its own correspondent from the scene of the tragedy and notes: a hospital should never be a military target, especially if it is full of children. This is one of the rules of war that Russia violated by attacking Kyiv on Monday. The publication presents the stories of those who found themselves under a rocket attack and summarizes: a place of healing and safety has turned into the complete opposite in a few minutes, rescue operations are ongoing.
The New York Times writes about the shelling of the Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital, emphasizing the horror of the situation and its impact on the civilian population, including children. She notes that this is part of Russia’s broader campaign to destroy critical infrastructure and terrorize civilians. He notes that in 2024, according to the WHO, more Ukrainians may die from attacks on medical facilities than last year.
The New York Times publishes a photo that embodies the horror of the Russian attack: a surgeon in a blood-stained gown who provided medical care a minute before the explosion, dissects the rubble of a children’s clinic after it.
The Polish newspaper “Rzeczpospolita” also reported on the shelling of the Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv, condemning Russia’s actions. The publication emphasized that the Russian missile attacks caused outrage in the international community, and quoted the Speaker of the Seimas, Shimon Golovnya, who said during a meeting with journalists in Washington: Ukraine must be constantly supported until it achieves a stable victory.
Bloody events show more clearly than ever that Ukraine needs additional help with air defense, – writes the Swiss publication Die Neue Zürcher Zeitung and emphasizes the clear evidence of Russian crime. The newspaper analyzes the video content and notes: The video from the scene shows an operating room littered with shrapnel, where a child was operated on during the attack, heavily damaged hospital wards, a completely destroyed farm building, and parents carrying their children out of danger. In another video, you can see the moment of the attack itself. It clearly shows a cruise missile flying steeply down and intact. Therefore, the publication summarizes, the statement of the Russians that the hospital was struck by Ukrainian anti-aircraft fire is unreliable.
