A spokesperson for the Ukrainian delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross says that the organization has suspended operations at its Dnipro office after three of its employees were killed in a strike on Sept. 12.
Russian forces attacked the village of Viroliubivka near Kostiantynivka, hitting the territory of the enterprise, Donetsk Oblast Governor Vadym Filashkin said.
The attack destroyed a truck with humanitarian aid and a car, killing three employees of the International Committee of the Red Cross mission and injuring two others.
"For now, our Dnipro office has suspended operations for some time," Spokesperson Oleksandr Vlasenko said following the attack. Vlasenko did not specify when the office is expected to reopen.
Although the attack did not target the office, regular Russian attacks on the region have continued to pose a serious risk to Red Cross employees stationed along the front line.
In a statement, the Red Cross said that its team was preparing to distribute firewood and fuel briquettes north of Donetsk to residents when the attack occurred.
Had the employees been actively distributing the materials when the attack occurred, "there could have been much more casualties," Vlasenko said.
The Red Cross has not pointed the blame on Russia for the attack, with Vlasenko adding that the organization "does not know exactly" who has committed the attack.
In response to the Red Cross' hesitation to directly blame Russia, President Volodymyr Zelensky said it was "disappointing to see that the Red Cross, in its official communication afraid to even say it was a Russian strike."
"This is our life, but it’s their face. And this is not just the truth – it’s a Russian strike - it is Russian terror," Zelensky added.
Russia has regularly attacked the regions lying on Ukraine's easter front with missile, guided bomb, and drones.
Earlier on the day on Sept. 12, Russian forces attacked the Kostiantynivka community in Donetsk Oblast and the village of Borova in Kharkiv Oblast, killing five people and injuring at least nine, local authorities reported.
Kateryna Denisova
(Updated: )
