‘Brutally savage’: At least 21 civilians killed in Russian attack; Zelenskyy demands global sanctions

Volodymyr Zelenskyy (ANI)

A Russian glide bomb struck the village of Yarova in Ukraine’s Donetsk region on Tuesday. More than 20 civilians were killed as pensions were being distributed, president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.Calling the strike “brutally savage,” Zelenskyy said the bomb hit directly in the middle of the rural settlement, targeting ordinary people. He extended condolences to the families of the victims, describing the attack as “frankly brutal.”The Ukrainian president urged the international community to respond with tougher sanctions and stronger measures against Moscow.“The world must not remain silent. The world must not remain idle. A response is needed from the United States. A response is needed from Europe. A response is needed from the G20. Strong actions are needed to make Russia stop bringing death,” Zelenskyy said through a post on X.This follows the deaths of at least four people on Sunday in central Kyiv, in what is being described as the “largest aerial attack” since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than three years ago. Russia’s assault on Sunday involved more than 800 drones and decoys, coinciding with stalled US-led peace efforts. Four people were killed, including a mother and her infant, after drones struck residential buildings. Smoke was seen rising from Kyiv’s main government headquarters, where senior officials have their offices.It is believed to be the first time the 10-story Soviet-era building, constructed nearly a century ago, has been directly hit in a Russian attack.”For the first time, the enemy attacked the building of the Government of Ukraine — Iskander missile strike,” Ukrainian presidential administration head, Andriy Yermaksaid through a post on X.The prospect of a direct meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelenskyy has waned since US President Donald Trump raised the idea last month. Putin suggested Zelenskyy travel to Moscow for talks, a proposal Kyiv rejected as “unacceptable.”Russia continues to insist that any peace settlement must include Ukraine ceding the territories it occupies or partially controls — Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.However, new indications suggest Putin’s territorial ambitions may extend further. A map visible in the background of an August briefing by Russia’s chief of the general staff, Valery Gerasimov, depicted not only the five claimed regions but also the Ukrainian territories of Odesa and Mykolaiv on Russia’s side of a dividing line, as cited by The Conversation.