Russia Ignores Ukraine Ceasefire, Attacks Sumy Kindergarten, Kills One Woman
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of violating a unilateral ceasefire announced by Ukraine, citing "active hostilities and terrorist shelling" targeting front-line positions and civilian areas with dozens of drones and missiles.
In the Sumy border region, a kindergarten was hit on Wednesday morning, killing one woman, local authorities reported. No children were present during the attack.
The opposing sides had declared rival unilateral ceasefires earlier this week, lacking agreement on terms, duration, or monitoring. Moscow initially called for a truce on 8 and 9 May to mark Victory Day, commemorating the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany.
Kyiv subsequently announced its own open-ended ceasefire from Tuesday midnight, pledging to act "symmetrically." On Wednesday, Zelensky stated Russia's actions constituted "an obvious spurning of a ceasefire and of saving lives," adding that Ukraine would "decide on our further actions" based on military and intelligence reports.
Tuesday's attacks resulted in 27 deaths across Ukraine, with 12 fatalities in Zaporizhzhia alone. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha asserted that Russia's continued aggression demonstrated that "fake calls for a ceasefire on May 9th have nothing to do with diplomacy. Putin only cares about military parades, not human lives."
Moscow has not acknowledged Ukraine's ceasefire demand. Instead, the Kremlin threatened a "massive missile strike" on central Kyiv if Ukraine breaches Russia's unilateral 8-9 May truce.