Donetsk Governor Vadym Filashkin accused Moscow of committing ‘another targeted war crime’.
Posted: February 4, 2026
Russian forces shelled the eastern Ukrainian city of Druzhkivka, killing at least seven people in a crowded market, the region’s governor said.
“The attack using cluster bombs targeted the market during the usual busy time on Wednesday morning,” Donetsk Governor Vadim Pilashkin said.
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In addition to the seven dead, 15 people were injured, he said. The oldest victim was 81 years old.
Separately, Russian forces dropped two aerial bombs on the city, while advancing Russian forces are trying to seize the city and damaged several houses and buildings, Filashkin said.
The attack came as Russian and Ukrainian officials were engaged in a second round of U.S.-brokered negotiations in Abu Dhabi, further angering Ukrainian officials who claimed Moscow had already broken a one-week promise to halt attacks on energy facilities.
“This is another targeted war crime and further proof that all Russian talk about a ‘ceasefire’ is without merit,” Filashkin said.
Additionally, Russian airstrikes hit the central Dnipropetrovsk region, killing a 68-year-old woman and a 38-year-old man in a residential area, and about 20 residential buildings were damaged in the southern city of Odessa, local officials said.
On the scene, the Russians also claimed their forces had taken control of Ukraine’s eastern settlements of Starukrainka and Stepanivka, adding to a slow and bloody advance that Moscow feels could boost its position in negotiations.
European Commission spokeswoman Anita Hipper accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of abusing the United Arab Emirates deal through ongoing attacks on civilian infrastructure in Ukraine.
“President Putin could end this war right now. He has shown no signs of wanting to do so. He is misusing even the ceasefire discussion and using it to continue attacking civilian infrastructure and killing innocent people,” Hipper said.
Russia is hoping to outlast Kiev’s expanded military, but Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is pressuring Western backers to increase arms supplies and apply economic and political pressure to stop the Kremlin’s invasion.
