Russian strike kills 12 in Zaporizhzhia after U.S. diesel deal with Moscow
Guided bombs hit residential buildings in Zaporizhzhia early Saturday, killing 12 people including three children. President Volodymyr Zelensky tied the attack to Washington’s temporary lift of Russian diesel sanctions announced Friday.
What happened: Russian guided aerial bombs struck residential areas of Zaporizhzhia around 4:48 a.m. local time Saturday, Kyiv Post and Ukrinform reported. Regional authorities said the death toll rose through the morning to 12, including three children, with at least 14 wounded — two in serious condition — and about a dozen more people still unaccounted for as rescuers searched rubble.
Damage: Acting regional military administration head Mykhailo Semikin and other officials said the attack damaged at least 26 residential buildings across the Shevchenkivskyi and Voznesenivskyi districts, including a direct hit on a five-story apartment block, Kyiv Post reported. City officials declared Sunday a day of mourning.
Diesel link: Zelensky said Russia had “expressed its thanks for the lifting of sanctions on diesel exports” by dropping five glide bombs on apartment buildings, Ukrinform and Kyiv Post reported. On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a deal for Russia to supply diesel to U.S. and global markets after a call with Vladimir Putin, and the Treasury issued a temporary license easing related sanctions, the Kyiv Independent and Reuters reported.
Talks backdrop: U.S., Ukrainian and European negotiators held about six hours of talks in Miami on Friday aimed at a unified proposal to end the war, a person familiar with the talks told Reuters. Zelensky called the diesel move a “weak decision” and said his team was being used as a “smokescreen,” Reuters and The Guardian reported. U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff described the Miami session as constructive but announced no breakthrough, the Kyiv Independent said.
Sources
- Ukrinform — Zaporizhzhia death toll rises to 12, including three children
- Kyiv Post — Death toll rises to 12 in Russian strike on Zaporizhzhia
- Kyiv Independent — U.S., Ukrainian, European officials meet in Miami
- Reuters via Yahoo — Miami talks as Trump announces diesel deal
- The Guardian — Ukraine war briefing: Kyiv blasts diesel deal as ‘smokescreen’