A packed railway platform in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro turned into a scene of carnage today when a Russian drone struck the station, killing at least 14 people in what President Volodymyr Zelensky denounced as a “horrific” attack and a test of whether Kyiv’s allies will respond.
The hit on Dnipro came as Ukraine and Russia seek to maintain a fragile, localised ceasefire in the shattered city of Oleshky — under Russian occupation since 2022 — where residents have endured months-long shortages of food, water and medicine.
Both sides said the truce was holding into its third day, and Ukrainian human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said he had “set out with the Ukrainian delegation towards Oleshky” via Belarus and Russia.
Even with that narrow pause in one location, Moscow continued to pound other parts of Ukraine.
Mr Zelensky said the drone strike in Dnipro hit a platform “where a regular commuter train and a regular passenger train were standing”.
By early this afternoon, Dnipropetrovsk regional governor Oleksandr Ganzha said the death toll had climbed to 14.
Another 14 people were wounded, he added, with six in severe condition after suffering “multiple shrapnel wounds”, including an 11-year-old boy and a man who had “both legs amputated”.
An injured person is carried away from the train station in Dnipro (Image: State Emergency Service of Ukraine)
Mr Zelensky branded the assault “horrific” and argued that “sanctions against Moscow and its war machine must not be eased for as long as this Russian war continues”.
Photographs released by Ukrainian emergency services showed bodies on the platform, rescuers helping victims from the wreckage, and two passenger trains burned out, their windows blown apart.
Since the opening days of Russia’s 2022 invasion, drones have repeatedly targeted Ukraine’s rail network, destroying hundreds of locomotives and killing several railway workers.
Ukraine’s air force said it intercepted three jet-powered drones during the daytime raid, but reported that a fourth slipped through air defences and struck the station.
After the attack, Mr Zelensky renewed his criticism of a deal reached this month between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin that eased some sanctions on Russia, allowing Moscow to release diesel onto global markets.
Volodymyr Zelensky said the ‘horrific’ train attack demands a response from Kyiv’s allies
“How many such terrorist strikes has Russia carried out against our people since sanctions were lifted on some Russian oligarchs and the energy sector, instead of de-escalating,” he asked.
EU Council President Antonio Costa urged partners to “increase the pressure” on Moscow following the Dnipro strike.
“Yet another cruel and devastating series of Russian strikes against civilians in Ukraine,” Mr Costa wrote on social media.
“The EU will continue to increase the pressure on Russia and to support Ukraine until a just and lasting peace is achieved. We call on all our international partners to do the same.”
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said she would “urge partners to further strengthen our support for Ukraine” at the EU-Canada summit this week and at the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in Atlanta this weekend.
“Russia must be held accountable,” she said.
French President Emmanuel Macron said the attack underscored the need for “far more than a localised ceasefire” such as the one in Oleshky.
“It is intolerable that Russia continues to reject all proposals to this end, choosing instead to pursue escalation and target civilians,” he wrote on X.
Read more: Latest Ukraine stories
Local officials also reported at least six other deaths in separate Russian attacks elsewhere in the country.
In Chernigiv, north of Kyiv, a strike on the city centre killed two 15-year-old girls and wounded nearly two dozen others, including four children, according to Dmytro Bryzhynsky, head of the city’s military administration.
In the central city of Kremenchuk, a drone hit a multi-storey residential building, killing three and injuring several people — including a six-year-old — the local governor said.
Three people were killed in the drone strike on Kremenchuk
In recent weeks Russia has stepped up drone and missile attacks across Ukraine, striking energy infrastructure near major cities in what Kyiv says is an effort to leave the country facing cold and darkness through the winter.
Earlier this week, the Kremlin said it would not reduce the overall tempo of the war, even as preparations continue to revive stalled talks under US mediation.
Mr Zelensky said yesterday it would be a “huge success” if the Oleshky ceasefire — brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump — enabled the evacuation of stranded civilians.
People trapped there have in recent months resorted to hunting and eating pigeons, former residents who remain in contact with those still in the city said.
Russia and Ukraine are due to meet next month with US envoys to discuss paths to ending Europe’s worst conflict since World War II, though firm dates for the talks have not yet been set.
Several earlier rounds have failed to bring the sides closer to an agreement.
Russia is demanding more territory in eastern Ukraine, along with sweeping military and political limits on Kyiv.
Ukraine and its allies argue that handing over land to Moscow would amount to capitulation and would leave Kyiv exposed to future Russian attacks.
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