More than 60 people were feared dead Sunday after a Russian bomb destroyed a school used as a shelter, according to Ukrainian officials, as Moscow’s forces continued their assault on defenders inside Mariupol’s steel plant in an apparent race to capture the city ahead of Russia’s Victory Day holiday.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was “appalled” by the reported school bombing in the eastern town of Bilohorivka on Saturday, calling it another reminder that “civilians pay the ultimate price” in war.
Authorities said that around 90 individuals had taken refuge in the basement. Two bodies were discovered and 30 people were rescued, but “most likely all 60 people who remain beneath the debris are now dead,” Serhiy Haidai, governor of Luhansk province, stated on the Telegram messaging app.
Meanwhile, Russia commemorated its 1945 win over Nazi Germany with a display of military power yesterday, while its troops battled Kyiv’s soldiers in Ukraine’s east.
However, as massive weapons were dragged across Moscow’s Red Square and a planned flyover featured fighter planes expressing support for the conflict, Ukraine will be urgently struggling to prevent a hoped-for military breakthrough.
Meanwhile, on Sunday (May 8), Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky awarded a medal to Ukraine’s famed mine detection dog Patron and his owner in recognition of their committed service since Russia’s invasion.
Since the commencement of the conflict on February 24, the pint-sized Jack Russell terrier has been credited with detecting more than 200 bombs and averting their explosion, fast becoming a canine icon of Ukrainian patriotism.
Zelensky presented the prize to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during a news conference in Kyiv. The audience laughed as Patron barked and wagged his tail. Trudeau rummaged in his pockets, as if looking for a dog treat.