Slaughtered on the platform: 13 rail passengers are killed in Russian drone strike on Ukrainian train as Zelensky calls for US action

At least 13 train passengers have been killed, and 10 more were wounded in central Ukraine after a Russian drone struck a platform at the Dnipro railway station on Thursday. 'The Russians attacked the platform where a regular commuter train and a regular passenger train were standing', President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a social media post.'Unfortunately, as of now, 13 people have been confirmed dead,' he added. The state Ukrainian Railways operator said a jet-powered Russian drone had hit the Dnipro train station.'The strike hit one of the platforms, where train No. 866 Dnipro-Zaporizhzhia was at the time,' it said on Telegram.An elevated threat level had been announced, according to the rail company's chief, Oleksandr Pertsovsky.'But unfortunately there were still a large number of people on the platform,' he said on Facebook.Mr Zelensky called for the US and Europe to take action following the horrific attack. Emergency employees carry a person injured at a railway station during a Russian drone strike on Thursday Emergency employees work at a railway station hit by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Dnipro, Ukraine October 29, 2026 13 people were killed and 10 others were wounded in today's attack, authorities said 'Fair and decisive actions by America and Europe are needed against Russian escalation,' he wrote on X. Russia has fired drones on trains across Ukraine since the first days of its 2022 invasion - destroying hundreds of locomotives and killing several railway workers.In September alone, passengers were evacuated from more than 5,800 Ukrainian train services due to the threat of Russian drone strikes, the national railway operator told AFP.The country's vast train network is a vital form of transport in the country, where journeys between east and west can take 24 hours.It comes as Russia's Defence Ministry said on Thursday that air defences had downed 1,214 Ukrainian drones overnight in one of the largest drone attacks launched by Kyiv. Around half of the drones were heading to the Russian capital, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said.Ukraine said Russia fired 112 drones at seven locations across the country.It also comes as humanitarian aid is poised to roll into the stricken city of Oleshky on Friday, as a localized ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine stretched into a third day and military units cleared away landmines. Russia has fired drones on trains across Ukraine since the first days of its 2022 invasion - destroying hundreds of locomotives and killing several railway workers Mr Zelensky (pictured) called for the US and Europe to take action following the horrific attackMoscow and Kyiv have observed the truce in and around the devastated southern Ukrainian city since Tuesday, despite remaining locked in war since Russia's all-out invasion of its neighbour more than four-and-a-half years ago. Previous efforts to secure ceasefires either never worked out, or the truces quickly fell apart.The planned six-day ceasefire around Russian-occupied Oleshky has also brought a rare and welcome stillness for civilians in the nearby city of Kherson, which is held by Ukraine and has also been wracked by the war.Moscow and Kyiv are keen to curry favour with Washington ahead of possible three-way talks next month between Russia, Ukraine and the United States.American military support is vital for Ukraine, but US President Donald Trump has recently indicated that he is disengaging with Kyiv as he waived sanctions on Russia and publicly chided Zelensky.Tankers carrying Russian diesel are currently sailing to the US, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will travel to America for a G20 ministerial meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, starting Friday, according to Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova.European leaders, on the other hand, have been trying to diplomatically isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin over Moscow's invasion and what they call a campaign of sabotage across the continent.Ukraine earlier this month reported sudden and unexpected limits on Starshield, the military-grade version of the Starlink satellite internet service owned by Elon Musk's SpaceX that is the backbone of Ukraine's drone operations and communications.Putin said that Russia has been in contact with the American tech titan to coordinate their orbiting activities because it is building its own equivalent of Starlink.'Elon Musk is a genius. Truly, a real genius,' Putin said late Wednesday.'We and our American partners value this relationship, and despite all the political issues, we continue to work closely together,' he added.This is a breaking news story, more to follow.