Deadly strike hits Kramatorsk buses
Officials in Ukraine reported that a Russian attack hit two passenger buses in Kramatorsk, a city in the east, leaving no fewer than 30 dead and 18 injured. According to the Donetsk regional prosecutor's office, an aerial bomb struck the vehicles at 10am. Police photographs showed corpses lying along a street covered in rubble, alongside the burned-out frame of what looked like a bus. Authorities said a second bus likewise ignited. The bombing hit a location beside a dental clinic on Yuvileina Street.[S1][S2]
Ukraine's State Emergency Service later reported that 33 people had been killed, according to Meduza, while the BBC also cited rescue officials putting the death toll at 33. The regional prosecutor's office said the attack likely involved a guided aerial bomb. Kramatorsk lies about 15 kilometres (9 miles) from the front line and is regularly hit by drones and artillery. Donetsk regional governor Vadym Filashkin accused Russia of deliberately targeting civilians and said public transport in Kramatorsk and neighbouring Sloviansk had been suspended because of the sharp deterioration in security.[S1][S2][S3][S4]
Attack follows deadly strike on Pryluky
The bus strike occurred one day after a Russian missile hit a five-storey residential building in Pryluky, located in the northern Chernihiv region. Residents became trapped when the structure caved in. The death toll reached at least 22, among them five children whose ages ranged from one to eight, the BBC reported, with three of those children just one year old. It ranked among the most lethal single assaults on civilians in recent months.[S1][S2][S3]
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the Kremlin of intentionally striking an everyday public transport stop as part of a savage campaign. He called on Western partners to act concretely to strengthen Ukraine's weakened air defences, listing anti-ballistic supplies, munitions for combat aircraft and funding for interceptors. He noted key discussions with allies were scheduled for Thursday and Friday. UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, who met Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Thursday, said the Pryluky strike revealed Russian President Vladimir Putin's evil intent and strategy, and unveiled fresh sanctions targeting Russia, its shadow fleet, oil firms, crypto and war financing.[S1][S3]
Kramatorsk and Sloviansk under pressure
Together with nearby Sloviansk, Kramatorsk belongs to what is called a fortress belt, and the two are the final large cities in northern Donetsk still entirely under Ukrainian military control. For over ten years Russia has sought to seize them, following a short stretch in 2014 when Russian troops held Sloviansk. Thousands of civilians and Ukrainian soldiers live in these cities. Recently, nets have been stretched over roads to shield traffic from enemy drones, yet such measures barely guard against aerial bombs.[S1][S3]
Glide bombs, equipped with winglets that let them soar toward a target instead of merely dropping, have been used against Sloviansk and Kramatorsk. In late August, up to nine glide bombs struck Kramatorsk within a single day. The Kramatorsk City Council called the attack a horrific crime carried out by the Russian army against civilians. Filashkin urged anyone remaining in the eastern front-line region to relocate to safer areas of Ukraine, stressing that civilian safety came first and that authorities could not gamble with the lives of passengers and drivers.[S3]
Moscow's aims and Ukraine's refusal
Moscow has repeatedly justified its full-scale invasion by claiming to liberate and protect the largely Russian-speaking Donbas. That region consists of Luhansk and Donetsk; since Russia controls most of Luhansk, the Kremlin now seeks the remaining 20% of Donetsk still in Ukrainian hands. Russian officials describe taking Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, whether by force or voluntary handover, as a required condition for ending the war. President Vladimir Putin has insisted Ukraine give up the rest of the eastern Donbas it holds. Kyiv will not surrender territory, convinced Russia would pocket any concessions and keep fighting.[S1][S3][S4]
The UN reports that by August of this year, more Ukrainian civilians had been killed than during the whole of 2025. Casualties have climbed sharply as Russia steps up attacks throughout Ukraine while the country's air-defence ammunition runs short. So far Moscow has said nothing about the Kramatorsk strike.[S2][S3]
