Russian forces abandoning tanks in hasty withdrawal ‘that may be sign of collapse’; outrage at ‘unconscionable’ airstrike on packed station | Ukraine latest

By Sky News correspondent John Sparks, in Kramatorsk

The remains of a ballistic missile lie on the grass outside the station in Kramatorsk, its work already done.

On the side, there is a message, за детей, which translates from Russian as for – or on behalf of the children.

It is a message of revenge it seems, sprayed in white spray paint. 

However, there is a grim irony for the explosions have killed at least five children in and around the train station. 

The weapon, a Soviet-era Tochka-U missile, was aimed at the only place in this embattled city where large groups were gathering. 

The train station was packed with some 4000 people waiting for trains heading to western Ukraine. 

In footage filmed on mobile phones, scenes of panic develop as passengers try to flee the main platform. Lifeless bodies and patches of blood are scattered on the ground. 

In one recording a woman cries, “how many dead bodies?  There are children – the children.”   

The authorities say at least 50 people were killed, with more than 100 have been injured. We talked to one man called Oleksandr Kachura, who arrived at the station just after the missile had struck.  

“There were a lot of fire trucks, ambulances, it was chaos, a crush, people running in different directions. Near the entrance, cars were on fire and as far as I know, people died in them. They didn’t have time to get out.”

We saw the station manager dealing with enquires when we arrived. 

A man had approached her, looking for information about this mother. He could see her bag amid a pile of suitcases in the middle of the bookings hall but he had not been able to reach her.

“She just doesn’t answer my calls. I am trying to call but she doesn’t pick up.”

The casualties were taken to area hospitals and at city hospital number 3, we saw victims waiting in stretchers in the corridors of the emergency department.

Outside, friends and loved ones waited for news. 

One woman paced up and down with a look of agony on her face. 

She told us her son had been caught in the blast and was currently undergoing surgery.

We spoke to a 17-year-old called Nastya who had been waiting for the train to Kyiv. Her head was bandaged and there were wounds on her arm.

“I remember a really loud noise and there was something landing, shells or rockets. Everybody hit the ground. That’s all, nightmare, everything starts to burn, everyone was panicking.”

A woman called Ludmila had been deeply shaken.

“It was terrifying, the horror, the horror, heaven forbid, to live through this again, no, I don’t want to.”

“What did you see, what did you hear,” I asked.

“Everyone was crying and they didn’t know where to run or what to do or where to hide.”

The Russian authorities have denied all responsibility, suggesting Ukraine bombed its own station. 

Russia’s Ministry of Defence released a statement saying it does not use Tochka-U missiles. 

These assertions are widely disputed and deeply resented in Ukraine. The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy called it an act of, “evil that has no limits. And if it is not punished, it will never stop.”