Russian strike kills at least 33 in eastern Ukraine in deadliest single attack this year

National Police of Ukraine/Reuters

At least 33 people were killed on Thursday when a Russian strike caused two public buses to catch fire in eastern Ukraine , local authorities said, marking the deadliest attack from a single strike this year.

Another 18 people were injured in the attack in Kramatorsk , a city in the Donetsk region, which prompted authorities there to shut down the public transport system and urge people to move to safer parts of the country.

“The Russians are deliberately targeting civilians,” said Vadym Filashkin, the head of the Donetsk regional military administration. “For them, a bus full of passengers is an attractive target precisely because a single strike can kill as many people as possible.”

The State Emergency Service of Ukraine (SES) said the Russian strike caused a fire on two buses and in the surrounding area. Rescue workers were at the scene to help survivors and extinguish the blaze, the SES added.

Filashkin said he had ordered the suspension of public transportation in the cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk in the wake of the attack and called on civilians to move to safer areas. “I urge everyone who remains in the Donetsk region to evacuate to safer regions of Ukraine,” he said.

“Russia is bringing death to Ukrainian soil. It is striking our cities, killing our people, and multiplying its crimes every day,” added Filashkin as he offered his condolences to the families and loved ones of victims.

A mass Russian missile attack on Kyiv in July killed 33 people across the city in a coordinated barrage. Yet Thursday’s attack marks the highest death toll this year from a single strike.

Both Kramatorsk and Sloviansk are crucial industrial cities close to the front line. Together with nearby Kostiantynivka and Druzhkivka, they form the core of Ukraine’s remaining “fortress belt” in the Donetsk region.

Kramatorsk has long served as a strategic rear point for the Ukrainian units serving along the eastern front – and as a place to which exhausted troops could retreat for a few days of rest before their next mission. But a press officer with Ukraine’s 93rd mechanized brigade told CNN last month that is no longer an option due to frequent shelling.

The fortress belt has slowly eroded over the past four and a half years. Its southernmost anchor, Kostyantynivka , has now been effectively lost as a stronghold.

CNN’s Ivana Kottasová contributed to this report.

乌克兰国家警察/路透社

当地政府称，周四俄罗斯空袭导致乌克兰东部两辆公共汽车起火，造成至少 33 人死亡，这是今年单次空袭造成的最致命的袭击。

在顿涅茨克州克拉马托尔斯克市发生的袭击事件中，另有 18 人受伤。袭击事件促使当地政府关闭了公共交通系统，并敦促人们转移到该国更安全的地区。

顿涅茨克地区军事管理局局长瓦迪姆·菲拉什金说：“俄罗斯人蓄意以平民为目标。对他们来说，满载乘客的巴士是一个极具吸引力的目标，因为一次袭击就能造成尽可能多的人死亡。”

乌克兰国家紧急服务局（SES）表示，俄罗斯的袭击导致两辆公交车及周边地区起火。SES补充说，救援人员已赶到现场救助幸存者并扑灭大火。

菲拉什金表示，袭击发生后，他已下令暂停克拉马托尔斯克和斯拉维扬斯克两市的公共交通，并呼吁平民转移到更安全的地区。他说：“我敦促所有留在顿涅茨克地区的人员撤离到乌克兰更安全的地区。”

“俄罗斯正在给乌克兰的土地带来死亡。它袭击我们的城市，杀害我们的人民，并且每天都在加倍地犯下罪行，”菲拉什金在向遇难者家属和亲人表示慰问时补充道。

7月，俄罗斯对基辅发动大规模导弹袭击，造成全城33人死亡。然而，周四的袭击是今年单次袭击造成的死亡人数最多的一次。

克拉马托尔斯克和斯拉维扬斯克都是靠近前线的重要工业城市。它们与附近的科斯蒂安蒂尼夫卡和德鲁日基夫卡一起，构成了乌克兰在顿涅茨克地区剩余的“堡垒带”的核心。

克拉马托尔斯克长期以来一直是乌克兰东线部队的战略后方据点，也是疲惫的士兵在执行下一个任务前可以休整几天的地方。但乌克兰第93机械化旅的一位新闻官上个月告诉CNN，由于频繁的炮击，这已不再是一个可行的选择。

在过去的四年半时间里，要塞带逐渐被侵蚀。其最南端的据点科斯蒂安蒂尼夫卡现在实际上已经失去了作为要塞的作用。

CNN的伊万娜·科塔索娃对本报道亦有贡献。