"The missile was an Iskander 9M723, fresh off an assembly line in Votkinsk, where workers in the Russian heartland plug American technology into the bellies of guided weapons, despite sanctions and export controls, Ukrainian investigators have found. By late 2025, Russia had launched more than 400 of the Iskander-M rockets. This one, which took flight on April 4, was the 64th of the year. The Kremlin claimed that it was targeting a meeting of military officials at a restaurant, though surveillance footage showed only civilians there."
"The boy was second-grader Matviy Holovko. His hometown of Kryvyi Rih, an industrial hub where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky grew up, suffered such frequent bombardment that he'd grown used to sleeping in the hallway. Matviy couldn't remember life before the full-scale war that started when he was 5. He knew how to identify the roar of missiles and drones before he could tie his shoes or write his name."
An Iskander 9M723 ballistic missile assembled in Votkinsk struck Kryvyi Rih on April 4, hitting civilians at a restaurant despite Kremlin claims of targeting military officials. Investigators report that Russian factories incorporate American technology into guided weapons despite sanctions and export controls. By late 2025, Russia had launched over 400 Iskander-M rockets. The strike killed an 8-year-old boy, Matviy Holovko, who had grown up amid near-daily bombardment and learned to recognize missiles and drones. On a warm spring evening he played in a playground when the supersonic missile approached, underscoring recurring destruction of hospitals, power plants, churches and schools.
Read at The Washington Post
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