Death toll from Russian strike on Zaporizhzhia aid point rises to 50

The death toll from Russia's bombing of an aid distribution point in Ukraine's southeastern Zaporizhzhia region has risen to 50, Kyiv's Emergency Service announced on Friday. Ukrainian authorities said it was one of the deadliest strikes on civilians this year.

The Emergency Service said the toll from the strike on the village of Komyshuvakha rose after eight more bodies were pulled from under the rubble. Search operations are continuing. Acting regional governor Mykhailo Semikin wrote on Telegram that rescue work had entered its fifth day. Al Jazeera reported that Semikin put the toll at 53, a figure it could not independently verify.

Kyiv says Russian aircraft hit a former school building in the frontline village on Monday, while civilians had gathered for weekly humanitarian aid handouts. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said a second wave followed. "After the first aerial bomb strike, there was a double-tap strike with nine more bombs, specifically targeting the shelter where people were taking cover," he said. He also called it a "vile terrorist strike".

According to Al Jazeera, local police said on Wednesday that 59 people were listed as missing, though some might be among the bodies already found. Police said as many as 39 people may still be trapped under the debris. Specialists are taking DNA samples to identify the dead. Four police officers and two rescue workers were among those killed.

The UN human rights mission in Ukraine said the strike likely violated international law. Continuing Russian attacks have remained a threat to the rescue operation, Al Jazeera reported.

The attack came a day after a six-day ceasefire in the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky ended. France 24 described it as the longest ceasefire between the two sides. Russia and Ukraine kept trading drone attacks on Thursday, injuring several people on both sides, including a child. On Wednesday, Russian attacks in the eastern Donetsk region killed four civilians and injured five.

Delegations from Ukraine and Russia are expected to meet in Abu Dhabi on November 10-11 for talks brokered by the United States, though Al Jazeera noted that previous rounds made little progress.