Seven are killed in Zaporizhzhia as Kyiv calls Trump's Russian diesel deal a 'smokescreen' for peace talks

From the Newshound archive · first published 10 October 2026.

Russian aerial bombs hit residential buildings in Zaporizhzhia on Saturday, leaving seven dead — among them three children — as Ukraine's negotiating team condemned Trump's newly struck deal to purchase hundreds of thousands of tonnes of Russian diesel from Putin as a "smokescreen" designed to distract from the talks. Zelenskyy called the agreement "unfortunately, a weak decision by strong partners," warning that the diesel revenues would allow Russia to "kill more, wage war for longer." Trump had announced the deal on Truth Social, blaming soaring US fuel prices driven by his Iran war.

The deal reverses a sweeping Russia sanctions law Trump himself signed last month aimed at choking off the oil revenues bankrolling Moscow's war.

Zelenskyy warned the diesel money would allow Russia to "kill more, wage war for longer," as Russian bombardments have now killed more than 55 Ukrainians in four days.

Ukraine struck back by targeting Yandex's two largest data centres on consecutive days, destroying AI supercomputers and disrupting services that tens of millions of Russians rely on.