The drive way to the war-torn town of Maryinka / Photo from twitter.com/UKRinVAT
Three passengers of a Volkswagen Transporter minibus have been killed in a blast as the vehicle hit a land mine near the Maryinka checkpoint in the so-called 'grey zone' in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, Press Secretary for the Anti-Terrorist Operation Andriy Zadubinny told UNIAN.
"At 07:56 local time today, a civilian Volkswagen Transporter van heading from the 'grey zone' hit a land mine about 600 meters from the Maryinka checkpoint while bypassing a queue," he said.
The vehicle's driver ignored land mine warning signs and tried to drive off to the roadside, where the minibus hit a land mine.
Five people were in the van, Zadubinny said.
"Two of them died in the blast immediately. One person died of wounds in an ambulance, which arrived from Ukrainian-controlled territory to pick up the wounded," he said.