A woman is seen with a Ukrainian flag in front of the tanks during Ukraine's 31st Independence Day in Kyiv on Aug. 24, 2022. Photo: Metin Aktas/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
At least 25 people were killed and another 31 were wounded in an attack by Russian forces on Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's office confirmed Thursday.
Driving the news: Zelensky said during a UN Security Council meeting Wednesday that Russia had launched a rocket attack on a railroad station in central Ukraine, causing five passenger cars to catch fire on the country's Independence Day.
- The attack occurred in Chaplyne, a town of about 3,500 people in the Dnipropetrovsk region, AP reported.
- An 11-year-old child was also killed by rocket fire in another part of the region, AP reported, citing the president’s office.
What they're saying: "Rescue and search operations have been completed in the village of Chaplyne," Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of Zelensky’s office, wrote in a Telegram post on Thursday.
- "As a result of the shelling of the residential sector and the railway station, 25 people died, two of them children," he added.
- "Rescuers are working. But, unfortunately, the number of dead may still increase," Zelensky said at the Wednesday meeting. "This is how we live every day."
The big picture: Wednesday was the six-month mark of Russia's unprovoked invasion and the 31st anniversary of Ukraine's independence from the Soviet Union, Axios' Dave Lawler reports.
- Zelensky had warned against mass gatherings on Independence Day, saying, "[It's] an important day for all of us. And that is why this day, unfortunately, is also important for our enemy. ... Hideous Russian provocations and brutal strikes are possible."
Background: Zelensky said Tuesday that he would not agree to freeze the conflict where it stands, with Russia occupying one-fifth of the country.
- Putin also seems intent on pressing on despite his own enormous losses.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with new details throughout.