A Russian drone strike on the town of Bohodukhiv, located west of Kharkiv, has resulted in the deaths of at least four individuals, tragically including three very young children, according to a statement from a senior Ukrainian official. Oleg Synegubov, head of the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration, identified the victims as two one-year-old boys, a two-year-old girl, and a 34-year-old man who were inside a residential house at the time of the attack. A 35-year-old pregnant woman and a 76-year-old woman sustained injuries and are receiving medical treatment.
This devastating incident occurred on Tuesday night, marking a severe escalation as Russian forces resume widespread offensive operations across Ukraine. The renewed strikes follow the expiration of a brief, week-long pause in hostilities. This pause had been reportedly initiated at the request of U.S. President Donald Trump to Russian President Vladimir Putin, intended to provide a humanitarian reprieve for Ukrainians enduring a severe cold snap with temperatures plummeting to -20°C.
In a separate and simultaneous attack on Tuesday, Russian forces deployed seven bombs on the city of Slovyansk in the Donetsk region around noon, as confirmed by Regional Governor Vadym Filashkin via Telegram. That assault claimed two more lives, including an 11-year-old girl.
The town of Bohodukhiv has been subjected to repeated attacks. Just a day prior, on Monday, overnight drone strikes nationwide resulted in the deaths of at least four other people, including a mother and her 10-year-old son in the same town, and left tens of thousands without power.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has stated that Russian forces are intensifying pressure on the Kharkiv region, specifically targeting critical transport and energy infrastructure with a record number of ballistic missiles. This sustained campaign has prompted local authorities to declare a state of emergency over the dire energy situation. The recent attacks signify a brutal end to the temporary ‘energy truce’ that had offered a short-lived respite to Ukraine’s beleaguered energy grid.
Amid the violence, President Zelensky has revealed that the United States is seeking an end to the war by June and has extended invitations to both sides for talks in the U.S. next week. In a related development, Russian authorities reported a massive Ukrainian drone attack on the town of Volzhsky in the Volgograd region on Wednesday night. Andrei Bocharov, the regional governor, reported damage to an apartment building and a fire at an industrial facility.