‘Act of terrorism’: Zelenskyy on Russian strike on passenger train that killed four

KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday condemned a Russian drone strike on a passenger train in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region, calling it an “act of terrorism” and saying the attack had killed four civilians.

In a post on X, Zelenskyy said the train was carrying more than 200 passengers when it was hit by Russian attack drones, stressing that there could be no military justification for such an assault. He added that the classification of the attack would be unquestioned globally.

“Today, Russia struck a passenger train in the Kharkiv region with attack drones. In any country, a drone strike on a civilian train would be regarded in the same way – purely as an act of terrorism. There would be no doubt about the classification, neither in Europe, nor in America, nor in the Arab world, nor in China, nor anywhere else,” Zelenskyy said.

Today, Russia struck a passenger train in the Kharkiv region with attack drones. In any country, a drone strike on a civilian train would be regarded in the same way – purely as an act of terrorism. There would be no doubt about the classification, neither in Europe, nor in… pic.twitter.com/J7UqQV70QG

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) January 27, 2026

According to Zelenskyy, one of the drones hit a carriage carrying 18 passengers, while over 200 people were on board the train at the time of the strike. He said the attack involved three drones and has so far resulted in four confirmed deaths. He noted that four people were still missing and two others had been injured in the attack.

“There is, and can be, no military justification for killing civilians in a train carriage. In particular, over 200 people were on the train, and 18 were in the carriage hit by one of the Russian drones. Overall, this attack involving three drones has so far resulted in four confirmed deaths. My condolences to all the families and loved ones,” his post read.

Russia strikes a passenger train in Kharkiv region with three Shahed drones. Thanks God two drones missed the train and only one hits the cabin full of passengers.
Four people reported dead and five are still missing.#RussianWarCrimes #Terrorism pic.twitter.com/gqAhlzsimF

— Canada (@Canada181340) January 27, 2026

The Ukrainian President said Russia must be held accountable not only for individual strikes but also for its growing capacity to carry out such attacks and called for international action to protect civilian lives and unite the global community.

“Russia must be held accountable for what it is doing. And this means responsibility not only for strikes against our people, against our life, but for the very ability to carry out such attacks. The Russians have significantly increased their capacity to kill, their capacity to terrorise. They are investing in the progress of terror. And our task – and this should unite all decent people around the world – is to ensure progress in the protection of life. This is possible through pressure on Russia. This is possible by punishing Russia for its actions. This is possible through support for Ukraine”, Zelenskyy’s post added.

Earlier, Russia had launched a “brutal drone attack” on the Odesa region, with more than 50 drones targeting “energy infrastructure and civilian facilities” as the primary targets. (ANI)