Russian missiles kill 21 Ukrainian civilians in independence day strike on train station

Russian missiles struck the Ukrainian town of Chaplyne on Wednesday, as Ukraine marked a muted independence day that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had warned could be interrupted by "something particularly cruel" from Russia. Wednesday was both the 31st anniversary of Ukraine's break from the Soviet Union and the six-month anniversary of Russia's invasion.
Four Russian missiles struck Chaplyne's train station, killing 21 civilians and wounding another 22 in five burning passenger rail cars, Zekensky deputy Kirill Timoshenko said Wednesday afternoon. It was the deadliest Russian strike on civilians in weeks. Hours earlier, an 11-year-old boy was killed when a Russian missile destroyed a house in the town of about 3,500 in the central Dnipropetrovsk region.
"Chaplyne is our pain today," Zelensky said in his evening address. "We will definitely make the occupiers bear responsibility for everything they have done."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Zelensky spent Wednesday laying wreaths of blue and yellow flowers at Kyiv's Memory Wall of Fallen Defenders, hosting outgoing British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and addressing a United Nations Security Council meeting over video. The strike on Chaplyne was reported just before his appearance. "This is how Russia prepared for the U.N. Security Council meeting," Zelensky told the delegates.
Johnson, making his third post-invasion visit to Kyiv, pledged Britain's enduring support of Ukraine and announced $64 million in military aid, mostly surveillance and attack drones. President Biden, meanwhile, announced a $2.9 billion military aid package designed to help Ukraine's armed forces modernize and persevere for years to come.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
5 weather-beaten cartoons about the Texas floods
Cartoons Artists take on funding cuts, politicizing tragedy, and more
-
What has the Dalai Lama achieved?
The Explainer Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader has just turned 90, and he has been clarifying his reincarnation plans
-
Europe's heatwave: the new front line of climate change
In the Spotlight How will the continent adapt to 'bearing the brunt of climate change'?
-
Ottawa Treaty: why are Russia's neighbours leaving anti-landmine agreement?
Today's Big Question Ukraine to follow Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia as Nato looks to build a new ‘Iron Curtain' of millions of landmines
-
How drone warfare works
The Explainer From Ukraine to Iran, it has become clear that unmanned aircraft are rapidly revolutionising modern warfare
-
How long can Nato keep Donald Trump happy?
Today's Big Question Military alliance pulls out all the stops to woo US president on his peacemaker victory lap
-
Are the UK and Russia already at war?
Today's Big Question Moscow has long been on a 'menacing' war footing with London, says leading UK defence adviser
-
The secret lives of Russian saboteurs
Under The Radar Moscow is recruiting criminal agents to sow chaos and fear among its enemies
-
Ukraine-Russia: is peace deal possible after Easter truce?
Today's Big Question 'Decisive week' will tell if Putin's surprise move was cynical PR stunt or genuine step towards ending war
-
What's behind Russia's biggest conscription drive in years?
Today's Big Question Putin calls up 160,000 men, sending a threatening message to Ukraine and Baltic states
-
Is the 'coalition of the willing' going to work?
Today's Big Question PM's proposal for UK/French-led peacekeeping force in Ukraine provokes 'hostility' in Moscow and 'derision' in Washington