Ukraine war: Mushroom cloud after missile strikes on Russian warehouse | World News

Devastating footage shows a huge mushroom cloud in the sky after a powerful explosion at an ammunition depot in Russian-occupied Ukraine.

The blast, said to have been caused by an air-launched missile attack by Kyiv forces, happened in Sorokyne, also known as Krasnodon, in the eastern region of Luhansk, located around 86 miles from the current frontline.

A stockpile of Russian explosives ignited in a terrifying inferno at the Yunost plant.

It was formerly used to produce specialist electrical parts for missiles and rockets.

But it is now thought to be a key ammunition depot supplying Kremlin forces, reports suggest.

Terrified children can be heard screaming in a video showing the mushroom cloud rising into the sky.

The incident saw schools evacuating as windows shattered in nearby properties.

One resident who filmed the explosion said: ‘My hands are shaking as I am filming this. There was such a strong explosion.’

The blast happened amid reports of ‘panic’ among Vladimir Putin’s forces as they face ‘the threat of encirclement’ in the village of Verbove in Zaporizhzhia, south-east Ukraine.

Military experts say the Ukrainian army has made significant advances in the area, according to the Independent.

A source for the Russian Airborne Forces, the air forces branch of the Russian army also known as the VDV, warned there is a ‘real threat’ their troops could be encircled.

The warning was reported by US-based war monitoring think-tank, The Institute for the Study of War.

The VDV source said President Volodymyr Zelensky’s troops were within 7km of encircling the 56^th VDV regiment.

Ukrainian forces are said to have broken Verbove on Friday and are now believed to occupy half of the village.

But the Russian Ministry of Defence has been accused of trying to cover up the advancement.

President Vladimir Putin’s troops retaliated on Monday by launching an attack on the Ukrainian port city of Odessa using suicide drones and supersonic missiles.

The attacks come the illegal invasion of Ukraine reached its 20^th month – with no clear end in sight.

Earlier this month, NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg warned there would be no quick ending to the conflict.

He told German newspaper, Berliner Morgenpost: ‘We are all wishing for a quick peace. But at the same time, we must recognise: if President Zelensky and the Ukrainians give up the fight, their country would not exist anymore.

‘If President Putin and Russia laid down their weapons, we would have peace.

‘The easiest way to end this war would be if Putin withdrew his troops.’

Both Russia and Ukraine unleashed some of the most devastating attacks of the war so far in the past week, in drone and bomber strikes.

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