Ukrainian forces strike two Russian Pantsir air defense systems and firing unit in occupied Crimea

In the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, a Russian bombing of an aid distribution center on Monday resulted in at least 40 deaths and dozens of people still unaccounted for, according to officials. This attack marks one of the deadliest strikes on civilians this year. It came the day after a brief US-brokered local ceasefire ended and less than a week before a scheduled US facilitation of talks between Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Abu Dhabi to address the five-year conflict.

Footage from Reuters captured men in military uniforms collecting bodies in white plastic bags in the village of Komyshuvakha, which suffered multiple bombings. Excavators were seen digging up earth near a large crater, while rescue workers searched for bodies underground. Ivan Fedorov, co-head of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Defense Council, reported on Telegram that 59 people were missing.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy stated that Russian forces dropped aerial bombs on an underground school building being used as a distribution point when people arrived to collect aid, followed by additional bombings of the shelter. Russian drone strikes killed 14 individuals on a Ukrainian rail platform. Two rescue crew members and four police officers were among the fatalities, according to emergency services.

Russia’s Defence Ministry claimed the attack targeted Ukrainian military units and two other settlements, alleging up to 25 Ukrainian servicemen were killed. Both Russia and Ukraine deny intentionally targeting civilians.

Bodycam footage from one of the slain policemen showed rubble and damaged buildings after the initial aerial attacks. The officer sought temporary shelter in the shell of a bombed-out building before residents fled to a shelter, and the camera captured their descent into a room as an explosion ensued. President Zelenskiy claimed Ukraine had no prior warning of the major Russian attack.

The strike followed the expiration of a six-day ceasefire, brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump, which allowed nearly 800 people to be evacuated from the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky. Zelenskiy honored Trump with a state award for her efforts. The US will convene delegations from Ukraine and Russia in Abu Dhabi on November 10-11 to discuss postwar security agreements and de-escalation measures.