Russian Drone Strikes Kill 12 In Dnipro As Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Announces Fresh Peace Talks

At least 12 people were killed on Sunday after a Russian drone strike hit a bus carrying mineworkers in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, Ukrainian authorities said, even as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Russia and Ukraine will hold another round of peace talks later this week.

The attack injured several others and triggered a fire that was later extinguished, according to Ukraine’s emergency services. The strike occurred hours after Zelenskyy said Russian and Ukrainian delegations would meet on Wednesday and Thursday for further negotiations.

Mineworkers’ Bus Targeted in Dnipro

Ukraine’s largest private energy company, DTEK, said the bus belonged to the company and accused Russia of launching a “large-scale terrorist attack” on its mining operations in the Dnipropetrovsk region.

“The epicentre of one of the attacks was a company bus transporting miners from the enterprise after a shift in the Dnipropetrovsk region,” DTEK said in a post on Telegram. Dnipro is the regional capital of Dnipropetrovsk.

Ukrainian Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal described the incident as “a cynical and targeted attack on energy sector workers,” adding that it occurred near the Ternivska mine east of the city.

Strike Follows Claims of Temporary Halt on City Attacks

The drone strike came just days after U.S. President Donald Trump said the Kremlin had agreed to temporarily halt attacks on the Ukrainian capital and other cities, as Ukraine endures freezing temperatures that have caused widespread hardship.

Despite these claims, Russian attacks have continued to hit civilian and energy-related targets across the country, Ukrainian officials said.

Maternity Hospital Hit in Southern Ukraine

Earlier on Sunday, Russian attack drones struck a maternity hospital in Zaporizhzhia, in southern Ukraine, according to the country’s emergency services. Initially, officials said three women were wounded in the strike, which also sparked a fire in the gynecology reception area that was later put out.

Regional administration head Ivan Fedorov later said the number of injured had risen to six.