At least 20 killed in Russian strike on east Ukraine: Zelensky

KIEV

An office is in ruins inside the Cabinet of Ministers building after a Russian attack in Kiev, Ukraine, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Dan Bashakov)

A Russian strike on Tuesday in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region killed at least 20 people, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a social media post.

Moscow has claimed the industrial region as part of Russia despite not having full control over it, and Kiev says the Kremlin has massed 100,000 troops at a key part of the front line for a fresh offensive.

"A brutally savage Russian airstrike with an aerial bomb on the rural settlement of Yarova in the Donetsk region. Directly on people. Ordinary civilians. At the very moment when pensions were being disbursed," Zelensky said in his post.

"According to preliminary information, more than 20 people were killed," the Ukrainian leader added.

The governor of the Donetsk region said 21 people had been killed and that the same number of people had been wounded.

Zelensky posted amateur video from the scene showing corpses strewn across the ground and a burned-out mini-van near a playground, with personal belongings, papers, and shoes scattered all around.

AFP could not independently verify the images posted by Ukrainian officials.

Yarova, which lies approximately eight kilometres (nearly five miles) from the front line, had a pre-war population of around 1,900 people.

Zelensky urged Ukraine's allies to issue a response to the attack.

"A response is needed from the United States. A response is needed from Europe. A response is needed from the G20.

"Strong actions are needed to make Russia stop bringing death," Zelensky added.