Crystal Charles
At least 24 civilians were killed and 19 others injured on Tuesday after a Russian air strike hit a village in eastern Ukraine, according to local officials.
The attack struck Yarova, a settlement in Donetsk region, as residents—mostly elderly—gathered to collect pensions, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. He condemned the strike as a “mass killing of ordinary civilians.”
Regional governor Vadym Filashkin said emergency workers were at the scene and urged residents to evacuate to safer areas. Images released from the site showed a damaged Ukrainian postal service vehicle used to deliver pensions.
Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said Russia dropped a guided air bomb on the village, located just north of Slovyansk and less than 10km from the front line. The head of the local administration in nearby Lyman said the strike occurred around 10:40 a.m. local time, as pensions were being distributed.
Most of the victims were elderly, he added. Officials said at least 22 people had since been evacuated from the area.
Yarova lies on a key railway line between Lyman and Izium, near Russian positions advancing in the east. Local authorities said pension distribution points would be moved further from the front line for security.
The strike is among the deadliest on civilians in recent weeks. In late August, 23 people were killed in overnight air raids on Kyiv. At the weekend, Russia launched its largest assault yet on the capital, hitting a government building.
Ukraine’s emergency service said three more civilians were killed Tuesday in separate Russian shelling in Donetsk region.
Zelensky called on the US, Europe, and the G20 to respond to what he described as a “ruthless” campaign aimed at prolonging the war. Russia’s military has not yet commented on the attack.