At least 12 miners killed in Russian attack in central Ukraine
The victims were employees of the energy company DTEK who were returning home on a company bus.
BarcelonaAt least 12 people were killed and 16 others wounded in a Russian drone strike in Ternivka, in Ukraine's central Dnipropetrovsk region, local authorities announced. DTEK, the country's largest private energy company, said the attack targeted one of its mines and that the victims were workers who had finished their shift and were on a company bus returning home. The region's governor, Oleksandr Ganzha, said the drone struck the side of the vehicle. Energy Minister Denis Xmihal denounced Russia for launching "a cynical attack targeting workers in the energy sector." "The company bus was transporting mine workers, civilians who were not involved in the fighting. Another brutal attack with casualties," lamented Ukraine's ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets. The bus was about 65 kilometers (40 miles) from the front line, according to police.
Mykhailo Volynets, president of the Independent Union of Miners of Ukraine and a member of parliament, has detailed in the TheKyiv Independent that four Shahed-type drones crashed in the area and caused a fire. He asserted that Russia "attacks mines daily" in Ukraine. "Russia attacks coal companies, energy facilities, substations, and specifically mining areas. Not a single day goes by without miners having to be evacuated to the surface in emergency conditions," he added. In 2014, before the war began in the east of the country, Ukraine had 145 coal mines, while now it only has 14 in operation, according to Volynets.
This same Sunday, a Russian drone attack killed a man and a woman in the city of Dnipro, in the same region, according to the governor. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has condemned the bombing of miners and reported that Russia also attacked logistical routes, with impacts on railway infrastructure in Dnipropetrovsk and Sumi. In addition, in the south, in the city of Zaporizhzhia, Moscow launched two attacks that injured at least nine people, including a child. One of the bombings targeted a maternity hospital, where six people were injured, according to Ukrainian authorities. "The attack on the maternity hospital is further proof of a war being waged against life," declared the region's governor, Ivan Fedorov. A partial truce and negotiations are underway.
These bombings come amid a partial truce announced by US President Donald Trump last Thursday, when he asserted that Vladimir Putin had agreed to halt attacks on energy infrastructure Ukraine has suspended operations for a week due to the extreme cold gripping the country. Energy infrastructure in Ukraine has been severely damaged by attacks in recent weeks, and millions are suffering from power and heating outages during the coldest weeks of the year, with temperatures reaching -20 degrees Celsius. According to Moscow, the truce should last at least until this Sunday. Meanwhile, diplomatic channels remain open to try to reach a permanent ceasefire. Zelensky announced that Ukrainian and Russian negotiators will meet again on Wednesday and Thursday in Abu Dhabi, mediated by the United States, and stated that Kyiv is ready for a "substantive discussion." The first trilateral meeting took place last Sunday, also in the United Arab Emirates, and the negotiators expressed their willingness to repeat the meeting. Initially, it was speculated that it would be this Sunday, but it will now take place in the middle of next week. Yesterday, Russia's chief negotiator, Kirill Dmitriev, met in Florida with White House envoy Steve Witkoff, and both described the meeting as "constructive."