It was the second large-scale attack to claim civilian lives in just over a week.
In the heart of Sumy, Ukraine, Russian missiles struck during Palm Sunday celebrations, causing a devastating loss of life. At least 34 individuals were killed in this tragic incident, marking the second significant attack on civilians in just over a week.
Reportedly, the two ballistic missiles hit Sumy around 10:15 a.m., leading to a scene of destruction and chaos. Witness accounts recall seeing rows of black body bags and individuals covered in foil blankets amidst the aftermath. Videos captured firefighters battling to extinguish fires from car wrecks and damaged structures.
Among the casualties were two children, according to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine. Additionally, 117 individuals sustained injuries, with 15 of them being children. The impact of this attack has deeply affected the community and left many families mourning their loved ones.
“Only filthy scum can act like this — taking the lives of ordinary people,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. In a statement on social media, he said the first strike hit buildings belonging to a city university, while the second exploded above street level.
The head of the Ukrainian president’s office, Andriy Yermak, said the strike also used cluster munitions in an attempt to kill as many people as possible. The Associated Press was unable to verify the claim.
The attack on Sumy followed a deadly April 4 missile strike on Zelenskyy’s hometown of Kryvyi Rih that killed some 20 people, including nine children.
Zelenskyy called for a global response to the attack. “Talks have never stopped ballistic missiles and aerial bombs. What’s needed is an attitude toward Russia that a terrorist deserves,” he said.
Other world leaders also condemned the attack, with French President Emmanuel Macron saying that it undermined Washington-led peace talks between the two sides.
“Everyone knows: This war was initiated by Russia alone. And today, it is clear that Russia alone chooses to continue it — with blatant disregard for human lives, international law and the diplomatic efforts” of U.S. President Trump, he wrote in a statement.
Elsewhere in Ukraine, two women, ages 62 and 68, and a 48-year-old man were killed in Russian attacks on the Kherson region, local Gov. Oleksandr Prokudin said. Another person was killed during Russian shelling on Ukraine’s Donetsk region, Gov. Vadym Filashkin said.
The mayor of the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, Ihor Terekhov, said a Russian strike hit one of the city’s kindergartens, shattering windows and damaging the building’s facade. No casualties were reported.
Spring offensive fears despite peace talks
The strikes come a day after Russia and Ukraine’s senior diplomats accused each other of violating a tentative U.S.-brokered deal to pause strikes on energy infrastructure, underscoring the challenges of negotiating an end to the three-year war.
The two countries’ foreign ministers spoke at separate events at the annual Antalya Diplomacy Forum a day after U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss peace prospects.
“The Ukrainians have been attacking us from the very beginning, every passing day, maybe with two or three exceptions,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, adding that Moscow would provide the U.S., Turkey and international bodies with a list of Kyiv’s attacks during the past three weeks.
His Ukrainian counterpart, Andrii Sybiha, contested that claim, saying Saturday that Russia had launched almost 70 missiles, over 2,200 exploding drones and more than 6,000 guided aerial bombs at Ukraine, “mostly at civilians” since agreeing to the limited pause on strikes.
Russian forces hold the advantage in Ukraine, and Kyiv has warned that Moscow is planning a fresh spring offensive to ramp up pressure on its foe and improve its negotiating position.
Ukraine has endorsed a broader U.S. ceasefire proposal, but Russia has effectively blocked it by imposing far-reaching conditions. European governments have accused Putin of dragging his feet.
Retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, said the Sumy attack crossed “any line of decency” and that the White House remained committed to ending the conflict.
“There are scores of civilian dead and wounded. As a former military leader, I understand targeting, and this is wrong,” he said.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the attack “horrifying” and said it offered “a tragic reminder” of why the administration was trying to end the war in favor of “a just and durable peace.”
Associated Press journalists Volodymr Yuchuk in Kyiv, Ukraine, and Katie Marie Davies in Manchester, England, contributed to this report.
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