At least 25 people have been killed across Ukraine following a series of overnight and early morning Russian air strikes that targeted a prison, a hospital, and civilians queuing for humanitarian aid, Ukrainian officials said on Tuesday.
The deadliest of the strikes hit the Bilenke penitentiary in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, where 16 inmates lost their lives and more than 50 others were injured, according to Ukraine’s Ministry of Justice. Four glide bombs reportedly struck the prison shortly before midnight, destroying key areas including the dining hall, administrative headquarters, and quarantine section. Of the injured, 44 were hospitalised.
Ukraine’s human rights commissioner condemned the attack as a “gross violation of humanitarian law,” noting that prisoners retain the right to life and protection even in detention.
In the north-eastern Kharkiv region, a separate Russian rocket strike killed five civilians who had gathered outside a local shop in the village of Novoplatonivka to receive humanitarian aid. Images released by officials showed bodies lying near the destroyed building.
Another attack in the central Dnipropetrovsk region struck a hospital in the town of Kamianske, killing three people, including a 23-year-old pregnant woman identified as Diana. A fourth fatality was recorded elsewhere in the region.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, responding to the deadly wave of strikes, called for tougher international sanctions against Moscow. “Russia must be forced to stop the killings and make peace,” he said. “Every day we delay, more innocent lives are lost.”
Zelensky also welcomed remarks by US President Donald Trump, who issued a sharp warning to Moscow on Monday during a visit to Scotland. Trump gave Russia “10 or 12 days” to agree to a ceasefire or face “sweeping sanctions.” Zelensky praised the statement, calling it “very important” and criticised Russia for “wasting the world’s time.”
Meanwhile, Russia claimed its forces were making advances on the battlefield. Over the weekend, Moscow announced it had captured the village of Maliivka in the Dnipropetrovsk region — a claim Ukrainian authorities have denied.
In retaliation, Ukrainian drones reportedly launched strikes overnight into Russia’s Rostov region, killing one person in their car in Salsk and setting a goods train ablaze. Another civilian was killed in the Belgorod region, with his wife injured in the incident.
As the conflict grinds on into its third year, the humanitarian toll continues to mount amid a faltering ceasefire diplomacy. Rights groups and international observers warn that both the scale and indiscriminate nature of recent attacks may amount to war crimes under international law.
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