In brief
President Volodymr Zelensky has announced that over 20 individuals were killed in a Russian airstrike on the Ukrainian village of Yarova. The attack, which targeted civilians collecting pensions, is one of the deadliest in recent weeks amidst the ongoing conflict. The regional leader reported as many injuries as fatalities, emphasizing the brutal impact on ordinary lives near the front line. Zelensky condemned the strike, urging the global community not to remain silent in the face of such aggression.
More than 20 people have been killed in a Russian air strike on a village in eastern Ukraine, President Volodymr Zelensky has said, citing initial reports.
The victims were ordinary people collecting their pensions in the Donetsk settlement of Yarova, he said. Donetsk regional leader Vadym Filkashkin said emergency services were at the scene, adding there were as many people wounded as killed.
Yarova, to the north of Sloviansk, is one of the big cities in the region and not far from the front line as Russian forces advance slowly in the east.
If confirmed, the death toll would be among the heaviest attacks on Ukrainian civilians in recent weeks, 42 months into Russia's full-scale invasion.
At least 23 people were killed in overnight air strikes on Ukraine's capital Kyiv at the end of August.
At the weekend Russia launched its biggest air assault of the war on Kyiv so far, hitting the main government building in the capital, in what Zelensky said was a ruthless attack aimed at prolonging the war.
Posting graphic footage of the attack on Yarova online, Zelensky said there were no words to describe the latest Russian strikes. There was no immediate response from Russia's military.
The world must not remain silent, Zelensky said, calling for a response from both the US, Europe and the G20 group of nations.
