Russian drone strike near Nikopol kills at least five, injures seven

Ukrainian officials reported that a Russian drone strike on a bus near the front line in southern Ukraine has resulted in at least five fatalities and seven injuries. The attack occurred on Wednesday in an area around the city of Nikopol, as stated by Dnipropetrovsk region governor Oleksandr Hanzha via the Telegram messaging app. Nikopol is located on the opposite bank of the Dnipro River from the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which has been occupied by Russian forces since the early days of the conflict. Photos shared by Ukrainian officials depicted a white minibus with blown-out windows and blood on the side of the vehicle. Mykola Lukashuk, head of the Dnipropetrovsk region council, remarked that the strike was aimed at a passenger bus carrying civilians. There has been no immediate response from Russian officials regarding the incident. The United Nations has reported a significant increase in civilian casualties in Ukraine this year, with at least 1,396 civilians killed and 7,978 wounded in the first half of 2026, marking a 37 percent rise compared to the same period last year. Additionally, the UN mission indicated that at least 250 civilians were killed and 1,596 injured in Ukrainian attacks within Russia during the first half of this year, representing a 121 percent increase in civilian casualties in Russia compared to the previous year. Both Ukraine and Russia have denied intentionally targeting civilians during the conflict that began with Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022. In other developments, an explosion was reported in Kyiv on Wednesday morning, and a Russian strike caused a fire at a warehouse in the city, according to local authorities. Russia also targeted energy infrastructure in Ukraine’s central region of Poltava overnight into Wednesday, as reported by regional governor Vitalii Diakivnych, who did not provide further details. Furthermore, Russia’s Defence Ministry announced that it had struck a cargo vessel in Ukraine’s Black Sea port of Chornomorsk, located in the Odesa region.