Ukrainian authorities have raised the death toll from a Russian attack on an aid centre in the Zaporizhia region in the southeast of the country to 40 people. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the raised toll on Wednesday, adding that some bodies had not yet been accounted for and that more than 30 people may still be under the rubble. The strike on Monday was one of the deadliest strikes on civilians of Russia’s nearly five-year-long war on its neighbour.
It came as Kyiv prepares to attend ceasefire talks with Moscow next week that have been brokered by the United States. Local officials had earlier confirmed 37 deaths, adding that they estimate about 38 people could remain trapped following the attack, in which Russia dropped several bombs on a school building in the village of Komyshuvakha, near the front line, which was being used to distribute aid. Ukraine said that a strike then hit an underground shelter filled with people in a follow-up attack.
Four police officers and two members of a rescue crew were among the dead. Zelenskyy condemned the “vile terrorist strike” and declared that it showed that Russia did not want de-escalation of the conflict. He added that the attack had wasted an opportunity created by a ceasefire and humanitarian mission last week in the front-line village of Oleshky.
Ukrainian police have released body-camera footage from one of the four officers killed, showing people being ushered into the underground shelter as the officer receives a radio warning of incoming guided aerial bombs. People were then seen inside the shelter before the footage cuts to black and silence. The United Nations human rights mission in Ukraine said on Tuesday that the bombing likely violated international law.
Local authorities said that Russian drones were hampering the search for victims in Komyshuvakha. Mykhailo Semikin, acting head of the regional military administration, insisted, however, that operations would continue. The US has announced a new round of talks aimed at ending the war for next week.
Special envoy Steve Witkoff has said delegations from Ukraine and Russia will meet in Abu Dhabi on November 10-11 to discuss post-war security agreements, de-escalation, humanitarian measures and ending the war. Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to the talks after meeting Witkoff in St Petersburg on October 21. However, previous such meetings have secured little progress, with Moscow refusing to compromise on hardline demands, including that Kyiv give up territory, demilitarise, and guarantee it will not seek to join NATO.
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