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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said any hopes of “progress toward peace” following a localised truce last week had been dampened by deadly Russian strikes on an aid distribution centre in southeastern Ukraine.
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The aerial bomb attack in the region of Zaporizhzhia killed at least 26 people, including two rescue workers and four police officers, on Monday, according to Ukraine’s State Emergency Service (DSNS). Five others were also reportedly injured in the strikes.
Ivan Fedorov, the regional governor, said Russian forces had fired “at least nine KAB-3000 bombs” on the Komyshuvakha settlement throughout the day.
“All emergency services are working flat out at the scene, while municipal workers are clearing the rubble,” he wrote in a post on Telegram.
Zelenskyy called it an “utterly horrific” attack, saying it had targeted “a school used for humanitarian purposes” where some people were receiving aid.
“After the first aerial bomb strike, there was a double-tap strike with nine more bombs, specifically targeting the shelter where people were taking cover,” he wrote on X.
Images shared by the DSNS from the scene show a building reduced to a pile of rubble and what appears to be a burned-out bus.
Russia ‘counting on more killings’
In his post, Zelenskyy said the attacks had also knocked hopes of moving closer to a peace deal.
“After the humanitarian operation in Oleshky, there was a moment when the next steps could have shown that progress toward peace was possible,” he wrote. Evacuees from the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky in Ukraine’s southern Kherson region arrived in Ukraine on Saturday after travelling through Belarus amid a rare humanitarian truce between Kyiv and Moscow.
But Zelenskyy said the Zaporizhzhia attack showed Russia was “sending an entirely opposite signal” and that it was “counting on more killings.”
“There must be a response to this – a response from the world. A strong and tough response,” he added.
Authorities in Kherson said Russia had resumed attacks on the region on Monday following a drone strike on the Korabelny district.
A 62-year-old woman and a 73-year-old man reportedly sustained blast injuries in the attack.
