Russian Attack Kills Two Deminers From Danish Refugee Council in Ukraine
A Russian rocket attack on the outskirts of Chernigiv killed two humanitarian deminers from the Danish Refugee Council and injured three others, Ukrainian authorities said. The victims were working to clear explosives in one of the world’s most heavily mined countries, in a region previously occupied by Russian forces at the start of the invasion. ©HANDOUT/Ukrainian State Emergency Service Press Service/AFP

A Russian rocket attack Thursday on northern Ukraine killed two people from the Danish Refugee Council who were clearing mines in an area previously occupied by Moscow's forces, the local Ukrainian governor said.

Experts say Ukraine is the most heavily mined country in the world, with teams of deminers across the north, south and east where Ukraine retook land captured by Russia at the start of its 2022 invasion.

"The Russians deliberately targeted workers from the Danish Refugee Council's humanitarian demining mission... two people are known to have been killed," Chernigiv regional governor Vyacheslav Chaus posted on social media.

The strike hit near the outskirts of the regional capital of Chernigiv, 125 kilometers (80 miles) north of Kyiv.

"First, the Russians littered the area with explosives and mines. Now they are killing people, civilians who are risking their lives to clear our land," Chaus added.

Three more people were wounded in the attack, he said.

Russian forces surrounded the city at the start of the war, having invaded from Moscow's ally Belarus, 50 kilometers away.

AFP

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