An explosion has killed 17 people, including a child, at a busy market in Kostyantynivka near Ukraine’s front line on Wednesday afternoon.

The attack left 33 people injured and a number of shops damaged by the blast, in one of the worst attacks in weeks, in the war-stricken country.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has blamed the attack on Moscow and says those killed were “people who did nothing wrong”.

“Russians target civilians and civilian infrastructure, wherever their missiles or artillery can reach,” he said.

“We understand that they delivered a deliberate strike.”

This attack comes after US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken visited the capital city of Kyiv, and announced wartime assistance worth more than $1.57 billion. Blinken’s visit to Ukraine aimed to assess Kyiv’s progress in pushing Russian forces out and how the US can provide aid packages.

“We want to make sure that Ukraine has what it needs, not only to succeed in the counteroffensive but has what it needs for the long-term, to make sure that it has a strong deterrent,” Blinken said.

“We’re also determined to continue to work with our partners as they build and rebuild a strong economy, strong democracy.”

Russia is yet to comment on the attack but have previously stated they aren’t targeting civilians.

Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited Bucha, where he talked to local residents and journalists by President of Ukraine available HERE and used under a Creative Commons license. This image has not been modified.