4 killed including child after car hit Russian mine in Kharkiv Oblast

A family car hit a Russian mine while driving through a forest in Kharkiv Oblast, killing at least four people including a child on July 7, according to Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov.

"Identification of bodies continues. According to relatives of the deceased, there could have been six people in the car: four adults and two children," Syniehubov wrote on Telegram.

"Further search for bodies and identification of persons is ongoing. Investigators and rescuers are working at the scene of the tragedy."

"We remind you: all forest strips, roadsides of the liberated territories are extremely dangerous! Anti-tank, anti-personnel and other mines can be well camouflaged on the surface or in the ground," Syniehubov wrote.

Ukrainian officials have reported that nearly a third of Ukraine's land, totaling around 174,000 square kilometers, has been mined since Russia's full-scale invasion began in February 2022.

The ministry said on April 4 that mine-related explosions have killed 296 civilians and injured 665 others.

30,000 square kilometers of Ukraine’s land cleared of mine threats, operations expanding further

Ukrainian Colonel Ruslan Berehulia, head of the Ministry of Defense’s Environmental Safety and Mine Action Department, reported that Defense Ministry specialists have cleared 30,000 square kilometers of Ukraine over the past two years - an area comparable to the size of Belgium or Moldova.

The Kyiv IndependentSonya Bandouil