AT LEAST 34 people been killed and dozens more wounded in a bloody Russian missile attack on Ukraine.
World leaders have slammed the Palm Sunday slaughter, with President Volodymyr Zelensky branding Putin a “b***ard” for deliberately targeting civilians in Sumy.
Zelensky said: “A terrible Russian ballistic missile strike on Sumy. And this is on a day when people go to church: Palm Sunday […] Only b***ards can do this.”
He urged the world not the remain “silent” or “indifferent” to the violence, and called for “really strong pressure” against Russia.
Casualty figures currently stand at 34 dead and 83 wounded, with at least two children amongst the dead.
Grieving relatives were seen weeping over the bodies of their loved ones lying in the street.
Local military officials said Russia had used vicious cluster munitions to maximise the slaughter.
They said: “It exploded in the air, the most victims were in the trolley bus — almost all passengers died. This is a trolleybus of death.”
The bloodbath was inflicted by two Iskander-M ballistic missiles launched from Russia’s Voronezh and Kursk regions, according to Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence.
Keir Starmer said he was “appalled” by the “horrific attacks on civilians in Sumy” and his thoughts to the victims.
He said that Zelensky has “shown his commitment to peace” and that “Putin must now agree to a full and immediate ceasefire without conditions”.
Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiga, condemned the attack as a “war crime”.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”Nato scrambles jets after Putin blitz on Ukraine as Zelensky ready for US talks” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6369714524112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]He said: “We are already sharing detailed information about this war crime with all our partners and international institutions.
“We call on all capitals and headquarters to respond decisively.
“For the second month in a row, Russia refuses to accept the US proposal for a complete ceasefire, which Ukraine unconditionally accepted on March 11.
“Instead, Russia is intensifying terror.”
Andriy Yermak, Zelensky’s chief of staff, said: “The Russians hit the city of Sumy with missiles, killing civilians.”
Andriy Kovalenko, a disinformation security official, noted the strike’s timing after the visit of US envoy Steve Witkoff to Moscow.
He said: “Russia is building all this so-called diplomacy […] around strikes on civilians.”
Witkoff held talks with Putin on Friday in St. Petersburg about the peace process, after Trump warned Russia to “get moving”.
French President Emmanuel Macron had a blistering condemnation for the attack.
Posting on X, he said: “Everyone knows: this war was initiated by Russia alone.
“And today, it is clear that Russia alone chooses to continue it — with blatant disregard for human lives, international law, and the diplomatic efforts of President Trump.”
Meanwhile, Latvia’s president, Edgars Rinkēvičs, described the attack as “a barbaric act” and Lithuania’s president, Gitanas Nausėda, called it “another vile Russian war crime”.
Nausėda added: “This is a slap in the face to everyone who seeks and desires peace.
“The civilized world must use force to stop these barbarians who are killing civilians and children.”
Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman, said: “Sumy. Day off. A major religious holiday for Ukrainians is Palm Sunday.
“The day when Ukrainian families go to churches, walk around the city with their children.
“And it was on this day that Russia launched another missile strike on a peaceful city.”
Anatoliy Fedoruk, the mayor of Bucha – destroyed earlier in the war by Putin’s forces – said: “A racist missile hit right in the heart of Sumy. Dozens killed.
“The city centre was turned into a bloody landscape. Continuous terror. They don’t stop.
“Another day when a terrorist state exists on the map. Each such strike is yet another proof: Russia is incapable of existing alongside the civilised world.
“Only pain, destruction, and death — that’s its essence.”
Russian state media claimed the attack targeted a “concentration of soldiers” in Sumy, but there was no evidence of a military presence.
Other outlets claimed the strike was staged by Ukrainian air defences.
The Palm Sunday attack comes a week on from Russian rocket strikes on Ukraine‘s capital Kyiv – which Zelensky said breached the naval ceasefire.
The Ukrainian president said the missiles were fired from Russian ships stationed in the Black Sea last Sunday after warning that Moscow was stepping up its aerial attacks.
Witkoff’s meeting with Putin on Friday lasted more than four hours, with the Kremlin reporting as focus on “aspects of Ukrainian settlement”.
It was the US envoy’s third head-to-head with Putin this year, but took place amid growing frustration from Trump over Russia’s delay tactics.
Trump this week specifically criticised Russia’s bombing campaign against Ukraine – which has intensified in recent weeks.
During his Monday Oval Office meeting with Bejamin Netenyahu, Trump said: “I’m not happy about what’s going on with the bombing because they’re bombing like crazy right now.”
And last Sunday he said again: “I don’t like the bombing.”
With the Palm Sunday strike, Russia has therefore thrown yet another barrier in the way of peace.
[boxout headline=”Trump’s warning to Putin” featured-image=”34434113″]By Patrick Harrington, foreign news reporter
PRESIDENT Trump has become increasingly frustrated by Russia’s refusal to end the war.
Ahead of his envoy, Steve Witkoff, meeting Putin this week, Trump warned the Russian leader to “get moving” and sign a full ceasefire deal.
Ahead of Friday’s meeting, Trump said: “Russia has to get moving. Too many people ere DYING, thousands a week, in a terrible and senseless war.
“A war that should have never happened, and wouldn’t have happened, if I were President!!!”
Then, on Saturday night, Trump doubled down with a stern message for Putin.
He said: “I think Ukraine-Russia might be going OK. And you’re going to be find out pretty soon.
“There’s a point at which you have to either put up or shut up. We’ll see what happens. But I think it’s going fine.”
This week’s US-Russia meeting was the third of its kind this year.
There had been speculation that the US would set a deadline for Russia to sign a deal – with April 30 chalked as a possible red line.
A ceasefire deal known as the Black Sea Truce was brokered by the US at the end of March.
The warring sides agreed to halt all strikes in the Black Sea, as well as any action against energy or infrastructure targets.
Zelensky has since accused Ukraine of violating the terms of the truce.