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In a tragic escalation of violence, a Russian drone strike on Sunday targeted a bus transporting miners in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region, resulting in the deaths of at least 12 individuals. This event has marked one of the most lethal assaults on energy workers since the war’s inception.
As the day unfolded, Ukrainian emergency services updated the grim toll, reporting that 15 lives had been claimed by this brutal attack. The incident underscores the ongoing peril faced by civilians amidst the conflict.
The timing of the attack was particularly notable, occurring mere hours after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed a delay in the forthcoming peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. This postponement adds another layer of complexity to the already fraught diplomatic landscape.
A representative from DTEK, Ukraine’s leading private energy company that employed the workers, informed Fox News Digital that the drone targeted the bus approximately 40 miles from the front line, situated in central and eastern Ukraine. The spokesperson condemned the strike, labeling it a “terrorist attack on civilian infrastructure,” highlighting the ongoing threat against non-combatant targets.
The DTEK spokesperson also described the incident as a “terrorist attack on civilian infrastructure.”
“This strike was a targeted terrorist attack against civilians and another crime by Russia against critical infrastructure,” the spokesperson added.
Russian drone strike killed at least 12 Ukrainian coal miners and injured seven others when it hit a civilian bus in Dnipropetrovsk region. (State Emergency Service of Ukraine, Dnipropetrovsk region)
The bus was transporting miners after the end of their shift when it was hit by a Russian drone, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine also confirmed.
At least seven workers were injured, and a fire sparked by the impact was later extinguished by emergency crews.
“The epicenter of one of the attacks was a company bus transporting miners from the enterprise after a shift in the Dnipropetrovsk region,” the company also said in a statement.
Zelenskyy condemned the strike late Sunday, calling it another deliberate attack on civilians.
Russian drone strike killed at least 12 Ukrainian coal miners and injured seven others when it hit a civilian bus in Dnipropetrovsk region. (State Emergency Service of Ukraine, Dnipropetrovsk region)
Earlier in the day, he announced that the next round of trilateral talks involving Ukraine, Russia and the U.S. would now take place Feb. 4-5 in Abu Dhabi, after originally being expected for Sunday.
“Ukraine is ready for a substantive discussion, and we are interested in ensuring that the outcome brings us closer to a real and dignified end to the war,” Zelenskyy said on X, adding that the delay had been agreed to by all sides.
The delay followed a surprise meeting Saturday in Florida between Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump’s special envoy, and Kirill Dmitriev, the Kremlin’s special envoy and head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund.
The talks in Abu Dhabi are now expected to include representatives from Ukraine, Russia and the U.S., according to the Associated Press.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have both met separately with President Donald Trump. Despite a peace deal agreement being close, territorial disputes remain, Zelenskyy said. Â (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP; Christian Bruna/Getty)
Meanwhile, Zelenskyy warned Russia is stepping up its aerial campaign against civilian and logistical targets.Â
“Over the past week, Russia has used more than 980 attack drones, nearly 1,100 guided aerial bombs, and two missiles against Ukraine,” he wrote on X on Sunday. “We are recording Russian attempts to destroy logistics and connectivity between cities and communities.”
In a statement, DTEK CEO Maxim Timchenko also explained the bus attack marked the company’s “single largest loss [of] life of DTEK employees since Russia’s full-scale invasion.”
“We can already say with certainty that this was an unprovoked terrorist attack on a purely civilian target, for which there can be no justification,” Timchenko said.
The attack marked “one of the darkest days in our history,” he added. “DTEK teams are working with emergency services on the ground in Dnipropetrovsk region to ensure the injured, and families who have lost loved ones, get all the care and support they need. Their sacrifice will never be forgotten,” he added.