Russian strike on Zaporizhzhia humanitarian hub kills at least 26

At least 26 people were killed Monday when Russian aerial bombs struck a school being used as a humanitarian aid center in the Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine.

The attack hit the village of Komyshuvakha, where local residents reportedly gathered every Monday to receive aid. According to Ukraine's State Emergency Service and reports from the BBC, the dead include four police officers and two rescue workers. While Reuters and other outlets initially reported 24 deaths, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy later updated the toll to 26.

The assault involved at least nine KAB-3000 aerial bombs. Sources provide conflicting names for the regional leadership; Euronews identified the governor as Ivan Fedorov, while the BBC named the regional head as Mykhailo Semikin. Semikin stated that rescue operations had to be paused several times due to the presence of Russian drones in the area.

President Zelenskyy described the incident as a "double-tap" strike, claiming that after the initial hit on the school, nine more bombs targeted the shelter where people were hiding. He called the attack "utterly horrific" and said it proved Russia is not seeking a de-escalation of the conflict. A day of mourning has been declared for the region on Tuesday.

In the neighboring Kherson region, authorities reported that Russia resumed attacks on Monday following a drone strike. Two elderly residents in the Korabelny district sustained blast injuries. These strikes occurred shortly after the end of a brief humanitarian truce that had allowed for civilian evacuations in the area.

Background

The bombing followed a rare humanitarian operation where evacuees from Russian-occupied Oleshky traveled through Belarus to reach Ukraine during a temporary ceasefire. US President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, indicated that peace talks involving the US, Russia, and Ukraine are expected to resume in Abu Dhabi next week.