Ukrainian presidential advisor Oleksiy Arestovych has offered to resign after implying that a Russian missile hit a building in Dnipro, killing 44 people. Arestovych apologized and said he made a “fundamental mistake”. The original remark sparked widespread outrage across the country and was used by Russian officials to blame Ukraine. The consultant is known for his daily updates on YouTube which have been viewed millions of times. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has yet to comment on Arrestovych’s decision to resign.
Hours after Saturday’s missile strike hit an apartment building in Dnipro, Mr. Arestovych initially said it appeared that the Russian missile had fallen on the building after it was shot down by Ukrainian air defenses. Ukraine said the building was hit by a Russian Kh-22 missile, which it does not have the capability to shoot down and is reportedly extremely inaccurate Ukrainians reacted angrily to Mr. Arestovych’s initial comments, with some accusing him of strengthening the position of Russian propagandists. Some Ukrainian parliamentarians signed a petition calling for Mr. Arestovych to be dismissed as a government official He later posted a letter tending his resignation and said he had made a “fundamental error”.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said:” the Russian attack was not hitting residential buildings” and suspected it was caused by Ukrainian air defenses. “Some representatives of the Ukrainian side reached a similar conclusion, “he also said. Ukrainian officials have so far said at least 44 people were killed in Saturday’s strike, several others are missing, and the chances of finding survivors are “minimal”. Kyiv, Kharkiv and Odessa were also hit by Saturday’s attacks, with Moscow saying they were aimed at Ukraine’s military and energy infrastructure.
