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At least 26 people have been killed in a Russian airstrike on a school being used as a humanitarian aid distribution centre in Ukraine’s southeastern Zaporizhzhia region, hours after the end of a six-day locally brokered ceasefire.
The attack took place on Monday (November 2) in the village of Komyshuvakha, raising fresh doubts about prospects for a peaceful resolution to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the country’s emergency services confirmed the death toll. Acting regional governor Mykhailo Semikin said two rescue workers and four police officers were among those killed. Five others were taken to hospital with injuries.
Rescue teams continued searching the rubble for people reported missing.
The local ceasefire was brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump to facilitate humanitarian aid deliveries to the Russian-controlled Ukrainian city of Oleshky and allow civilians to be evacuated.
The six-day truce, which began on October 29, ended on Sunday. Neither side accused the other of violating it during that period.
Footage released by Ukraine’s emergency services showed the school building reduced to rubble as rescue workers searched through the debris.
The two rescue workers killed in the attack were identified as Denys Konovalenko and Oleksii Sushevskyi, both aged 44.
Zelensky said humanitarian assistance was distributed to local residents at the school every Monday. Russian forces dropped bombs from several aircraft as people were arriving to collect aid, followed by a second wave of strikes targeting the shelter, he said.
He accused Russian forces of deliberately attacking the facility despite knowing that civilians were present.
Paying tribute to the rescue workers, Ukraine’s emergency services said they had worked daily in dangerous conditions to help people and save lives, losing their own lives while performing their duties.
Zelensky said the ceasefire in Oleshky had created an opportunity to make further progress towards peace, but the subsequent attack sent the opposite message.
Accusing Moscow of pursuing further bloodshed rather than easing tensions, he said the incident required a response.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s military accused Russia of using the ceasefire to strengthen its military positions.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said repositioning military forces during a ceasefire was normal under such circumstances. He also accused Ukrainian forces of using previous pauses in fighting to regroup.
Moscow, however, described the humanitarian aid operation in Oleshky as a success.
