The midmorning strike hit as Ukrainians were celebrating Palm Sunday, officials said. It appeared to be the deadliest attack on civilians this year and came as the Trump administration pushes for a cease-fire.
Emergency workers at the site of a strike in Sumy, Ukraine, on Sunday. Ihor Klymenko, Ukraineβs interior minister, said the streets had been crowded with civilians out enjoying Palm Sunday.
President Trump says he wants to make a deal for minerals from Ukraine in exchange for aid. That followed a long effort by Ukrainian officials to appeal to Mr. Trumpβs transactional nature.
At least 14 people were killed in Poltava, Ukrainian officials said, blaming Russia. Four died in Sudzha, a Russian town held by Ukraine, in a strike each country blamed on the other.
Ukraineβs defense minister fired the head of a state agency that procured over $7 billion in armaments last year, citing βunsatisfactoryβ results. She says the move is illegal and vows to stay in her post.
The mine, near the frontline city of Pokrovsk, produced coking coal crucial for Ukraineβs steel industry. It kept running until the very last moment, when Russian forces finally reached its gates.