Russians Shelled FSD Office in Kharkiv: The Building and Equipment Were Damaged

On July 24th at 5 am, Russian forces shelled Kharkiv. One of the missiles hit the office of the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD), as reported by the Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor's Office. As a result of the strike, several floors and the facade of the building were destroyed, and six FSD vehicles were damaged. Suspilne correspondents, citing Foundation employees, reported that the explosion damaged the organisation's medical vehicles used for fieldwork.

In an official press release, FSD confirmed that their Kharkiv office suffered significant damage. Some equipment and vehicles were damaged, but no Foundation employees were killed or injured.

"Despite this setback, FSD remains steadfast in our commitment to providing essential humanitarian demining services and support to the people of Ukraine. We are currently assessing the full extent of the damage and formulating a plan to resume our operations as quickly as possible” the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action stated.

FSD (Fondation suisse de déminage) is a humanitarian non-governmental organisation specialising in mine action, based in Geneva, Switzerland. For over 25 years, FSD has been protecting civilians from landmines and explosive remnants of war. FSD implemented its first projects in Ukraine in 2015 in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. As of today, over 600 Foundation specialists work in the Chernihiv, Kharkiv, and Donetsk regions. FSD is also starting operations in the Kherson region.