A tragic incident unfolded in eastern Ukraine as a Russian drone collided with a residential house, resulting in the loss of three young children and their father. Ukrainian officials confirmed the devastating outcome, which President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned for hindering diplomatic efforts amidst ongoing peace negotiations urged by Washington.
The mother of the children, who is pregnant, sustained severe burns and was fighting for her life in a hospital, as announced by Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko. The heartbreaking event occurred in the town of Bohodukhiv, located west of Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, late on Tuesday, according to local prosecutors.
Kharkiv Region Prosecutor’s Office revealed that the drone strike caused the complete destruction of the residential building, leading to the family being trapped under the debris and engulfed in flames. The victims were identified as a 34-year-old man and two 2-year-old boys, along with a 1-year-old girl. The status of the boys being twins was not specified, but officials mentioned that the family had recently relocated to the town.
Images shared by Ukraine’s emergency service on Telegram depicted firefighters combating a fire engulfing the house, with smoke billowing through the wooden roof beams. At the time of reporting, there had been no response from Russia regarding the tragic incident. Despite Moscow’s denial of deliberately targeting civilians during the conflict, thousands have been killed in Russian attacks since the full-scale invasion in February 2022. Ukraine, in response, has also struck civilian locations in Russia or Russian-occupied areas within Ukraine, albeit on a significantly smaller scale.