Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast faces worsening civilian danger as Russian glide bomb attacks intensify across frontline cities in the eastern Donbas region
At least 30 people have been killed after Russian glide bombs struck two civilian buses in the eastern Ukrainian frontline city of Kramatorsk, according to rescue officials, amid a dramatic escalation of attacks across the region.
Authorities said another three people were killed in the nearby village of Bilenke, which forms part of the wider Kramatorsk community. Regional officials also reported that 18 people were wounded following the latest attack on civilian areas.
Donetsk regional head Vadym Filashkin accused Russian forces of deliberately targeting buses carrying passengers, saying the attack appeared intended to cause the highest possible number of civilian casualties in the frontline city.
The devastating strike has further increased fears among residents of Kramatorsk and neighbouring Slovyansk, two strategically important cities forming part of Ukraine’s eastern defensive belt against advancing Russian forces seeking greater control of Donetsk.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the attack and warned that Russia would face a response. He said the latest strikes demonstrated Moscow’s continuing efforts to destroy civilian life across the Donbas.
“This strike will not go without our response,” Zelensky said, while calling on Ukraine’s international partners to take stronger action against Russia following the latest deadly attack on civilians.
In a statement posted on Telegram, Zelensky said Russia was attempting to destroy all life in Donbas and urged the international community to respond harshly, particularly after the mounting civilian death toll recorded across Ukraine.
Images released by local prosecutors showed the burned-out metal remains of a bus alongside scattered debris and victims lying on the road. The images offered a stark indication of the destruction caused by the powerful attack.
Moscow has not yet commented on the latest strike or directly addressed the Ukrainian accusations. Russia has repeatedly denied deliberately targeting civilians during its full-scale invasion, despite extensive civilian casualties and widespread destruction.
The Kramatorsk attack comes amid a sharp increase in Russian strikes across Ukraine, with authorities reporting growing numbers of civilian deaths. The United Nations has said civilian fatalities this year have already exceeded the total recorded throughout 2025.
The deteriorating situation has also been highlighted by another deadly Russian attack on the Ukrainian city of Pryluky, east of Kyiv, where a five-storey residential building was destroyed earlier this week.
Twenty-two people were killed in the Pryluky strike, including five children. Three of the children were only one year old, highlighting the devastating impact of Russia’s expanding campaign of long-range attacks against Ukrainian communities.
UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband visited the Pryluky site alongside Zelensky and condemned what he described as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “evil intent and evil strategy” behind the continuing attacks against Ukraine.
Miliband also announced further British sanctions targeting Russia’s war machine, including its shadow fleet, oil companies, cryptocurrency networks and financial structures supporting the invasion, while promising continued British backing for Ukraine.
Following the Kramatorsk attack, Filashkin urged residents remaining in the eastern frontline region to relocate to safer parts of Ukraine. He said the deteriorating security situation made evacuation increasingly urgent.
Authorities subsequently ordered public transport in Kramatorsk and neighbouring areas to stop. Filashkin said protecting civilians had become the overriding priority and that officials could not justify placing passengers or drivers at additional risk.
Kramatorsk and Slovyansk are part of what is often described as Ukraine’s eastern “fortress belt”, a chain of strategically important cities that Russian forces are attempting to capture as Moscow seeks control over the wider Donbas region.
The Kremlin has repeatedly claimed that its invasion is aimed at the “liberation” and protection of predominantly Russian-speaking communities in Donbas. Ukraine and its Western allies have rejected those claims as baseless justification for military aggression.
The Donbas consists primarily of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Russia controls most of Luhansk and is now seeking to capture the remaining Ukrainian-held territory in Donetsk, where Kramatorsk and Slovyansk remain strategically significant.
For much of the war, Kramatorsk has served as an important logistics and supply centre for Ukrainian forces. However, its proximity to advancing Russian troops has increasingly made the city a target for frequent aerial bombardments.
Russian forces have repeatedly used glide bombs against Kramatorsk and Slovyansk. The weapons are fitted with wing-like components that allow them to travel considerable distances toward their targets instead of simply falling vertically.
In late August, Russian forces reportedly launched as many as nine glide bombs at Kramatorsk in a single day, demonstrating the growing intensity of aerial attacks facing the city and surrounding communities.
Kramatorsk city council described the latest strike as a “horrific crime” against the civilian population, insisting that the location struck contained no military targets and accusing Russian forces of deliberately attacking ordinary residents.
The latest violence is also part of a broader Russian aerial campaign affecting cities far from the immediate frontline. Kyiv has faced repeated air raids in recent weeks, with warning sirens frequently sounding across the capital.
Police in Kyiv said four people were killed and two others injured during the latest Russian attack on the capital on Thursday, adding to the growing pressure on civilians already dealing with repeated disruption.
Russian attacks have also increasingly affected essential infrastructure. Strikes against Ukraine’s energy network have caused widespread power interruptions, while water authorities in Kyiv warned that electricity shortages were beginning to affect water pressure across parts of the capital.
The Kyiv metro, a crucial transport system used by millions of residents, briefly halted train services on Thursday after a voltage drop caused by problems at external power centres. Services later resumed, although trains operated at longer intervals.
Zelensky has urged Ukraine’s international partners to provide concrete assistance, including additional air-defence systems and weapons packages capable of protecting civilians from Russian missiles, drones and glide bombs.
Ukraine faces significant difficulties intercepting incoming Russian ballistic weapons because interceptor missiles remain in limited supply internationally. As a result, communities across the country continue relying heavily on shelters and early-warning systems.
Ahead of the deadly Pryluky strike, Zelensky had warned that Ukrainian intelligence indicated Russia could be preparing a major new offensive. Families in Kyiv responded by moving toward underground metro stations when air-raid warnings were issued.
Long-range attacks have intensified on both sides in recent months. Russian strikes have increasingly targeted Ukrainian infrastructure, logistics facilities and data centres, while Ukraine has expanded its own drone campaign against strategic Russian sites.
Russian state-run media reported on Thursday that several websites inside Russia had become inaccessible following a Ukrainian drone attack involving a data centre belonging to Yandex, the country’s largest search engine.
The escalating attacks underline the widening dangers facing civilians more than four years after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. For communities such as Kramatorsk, the threat is becoming increasingly immediate as Russian forces press deeper toward Donetsk.
With public transport suspended and authorities urging civilians to evacuate, Kramatorsk is confronting another dangerous phase of the war. The latest deaths have intensified international pressure on Russia while reinforcing Ukraine’s calls for stronger air-defence support.
This article was created using automation technology and was thoroughly edited and fact-checked by one of our editorial staff members