Kiev, Ukraine
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According to Ukrainian officials, at least 25 people died and another 19 injured in Yaroba village in Yaroba village in eastern Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Voldimir Zelensky described the airstrikes as “cruelly savage” and “directly to the people. Ordinary civilians.” He added, “Such Russian strikes should not be left without an appropriate response from the world.”
The video of the scene shared by Zelensky shows the horrifying aftermath of many lively bodies lying on the ground (wearing civilian clothes). Some people in the footage look like elderly people, and many seem to have suffered catastrophic injuries.
Zelensky said the victims were hit because pensions were distributed in the village. This is just a few miles away from the frontline. Pension payments are distributed, among other things, by Ukrainian postal services.
The remains of the van, which looks like a postal service’s mobile branch, can also be seen on Yaroba’s video. There is a children’s play area with two yellow slides in the background.
“The Russians attacked people while they were receiving pensions. This is not war. This is pure terrorism,” said the head of the military regime Vadim Firashkin in the Donetsk region, adding that rescuers and Medics are still on the scene.
According to Igor Smanvansky, chief executive of Ukraine’s Postal Service, the local post office branch manager was injured in the strike and was taken to the hospital. He said the service is constantly changing its security procedures to avoid targeted attacks, highlighting footage from the scene showing that it was parked under a tree “to reduce the risk of being discovered.”
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andri Sibikha said he hoped a “strong reaction” from his allies after the bombing and called for further sanctions on Russia.
“Russian propaganda advocates for “saving” people in the Donetsk region, but in reality it is dropping massive air bombs on those who came to receive their pension,” Sibikha added.
The Russian Ministry of Defense has not commented on the attack, but Russian state Mediatas cited a telegram channel claiming that Russia did not carry out the strike without providing evidence.
The population of Yarova village was about 2,800 before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The village was occupied in June 2022, but later that year the Ukrainian forces regained it.
Seven people were killed and at least 22 injured across Ukraine on the last day. In the eastern Zaporidia region, one woman has died and another was injured in the Russian attack, local authorities said early Tuesday. Six people have been killed and 10 people were injured in another attack on the Donetsk region on Monday, Firashkin said.
This story has been updated with additional developments.
