War In Ukraine: Latest Developments

Firefighters work amidst the rubble of destroyed buildings in the town of Borodianka, northwest of Kyiv, on 8 April, 2022. (AFP Photo)

Here are the latest developments in the war in Ukraine:

50 Killed At Train Station 

At least 50 people are killed, including five children, in a rocket attack on a train station in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk that is being used for civilian evacuations, according to Donestsk region governor Pavlo Kyrylenko.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky describes Russia as an "evil with no limits" after the attack.

US President Joe Biden accuses Russia of being behind the attack, deeming the incident a "horrific atrocity,", while French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian deems it a "crime against humanity".

Russia's defence ministry accuses Kyiv of carrying out the attack, saying in a statement it wanted to use fleeing residents "as a 'human shield' to defend the positions of Ukraine's Armed Forces".

Eastern Evacuation 

The attack comes as civilians in eastern Ukraine struggle to evacuate, after officials tell them they have a "last chance" to avoid a major Russian offensive expected in the Donbas region.

Russia has redeployed its troops towards the east and south, aiming to create a land link between occupied Crimea and the Moscow-backed separatist statelets of Donetsk and Lugansk in Donbas.

EU Chief Warns Of Russian 'Decay' 

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says Russia will descend into "economic, financial and technological decay, while Ukraine is marching towards a European future", speaking after meeting Zelensky in Kyiv.

She met the Ukrainian leader after visiting a mass grave in Bucha, a town north of Kyiv where Russian forces are accused by Ukraine's allies of carrying out atrocities against civilians.

Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer also leaves to travel to Kyiv, one of the first EU leaders to visit Ukraine after images of corpses in Bucha came to light.

Borodianka 'Horrific' 

The destruction left by Russian troops in the town of Borodianka outside of Kyiv is "much more horrific" than the situation uncovered in the nearby town of Bucha, Zelensky says.

Ukraine's prosecutor general says 26 bodies have been recovered from underneath two destroyed apartment buildings there.

Odessa Curfew 

Ukraine's southern city of Odessa imposes a curfew from Saturday evening to Monday evening over a "missile strike threat" from Russia, and after the shelling of the train station in Kramatorsk.

Russia Shutters Rights Groups 

Russia says it is shutting down the local offices of a number of international organisations including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

The organisations have been taken off Russia's registry of international organisations and foreign NGOs due to "violations of the current legislation of the Russian Federation", the justice ministry says.

Britain Sanctions Putin’s Daughters 

Britain announces sanctions on the daughters of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

It also sends Ukraine more "high-grade military equipment" including Starstreak anti-aircraft missiles and 800 anti-tank missiles.

Turkey Hopeful On Peace Talks 

Russia and Ukraine are willing to move forward with talks even though images of bodies found in Bucha have stalled the process, an official from Turkey, which is mediating the process, says.

There are "some issues pending" including the status of the Donbas and Crimea regions as well as security guarantees, according to the official, who says there is no date fixed for the next round of negotiations.

Russian Inflation Soars 

Russia's inflation rate reached 16.7 percent year-on-year in March, the state statistics agency Rosstat says, a level not seen since 2015, while food prices, a huge concern for Russians on low incomes, rose by 19.5 percent.