Russian strike on buses in Ukraine kills at least 30

Charlotte Gallagher (0:00)

This is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service. Hello, I'm Charlotte Gallagher, and 1300 Hours GMT on Thursday, the 8th of October. These are our main stories. At least 30 people are reported to have been killed by a Russian strike on two buses in the Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk. Israel has downgraded the British consulate in East Jerusalem after threatening to close it completely over the UK's decision to sanction Israeli goods from illegal West Bank settlements.

Also in this podcast, how people making Premier League football shirts are paid less than $2 an hour and say they're working in dangerous conditions.

SPEAKER_2 (0:48)

I got electric shock for the second time by a bare wire, but they only took action after the second time I got shocked.

Charlotte Gallagher (0:56)

And recovery efforts for the world's animals reverse species loss as bluefin tuna returns in huge numbers off the British coast after almost disappearing from UK waters.

Justin Rowlett (1:10)

Really dramatic to see this recovery of a species that was surrounded Britain about 70 years ago, but then kind of vanished. You know, it was incredibly rare to see tuna off the coast of Britain as recently as 10 years ago.

Charlotte Gallagher (1:26)

We start with the latest deadly attack by Russia on Ukraine, this time on buses in the strategic eastern city of Kramatorsk. Officials say more than 30 people have been killed. So why has Russia launched this attack? I asked our correspondent, Abdul Jalil Abdur-Rasulov, who's in Kyiv.

Abdul Jalil Abdur-Rasulov (1:46)

Kramatorsk is one of the key hubs in eastern Ukraine, the key logistical hub and one of the so-called fortress belts in the region of Donbass.

And the Russian forces are trying to cut off all the logistical routes that support the Ukrainian forces at the front line. And so perhaps that's one of the reasons why the city of Kramatorsk gets regularly hit by Russian drones, missiles and aviation bombs. So this is not the first time when they hit the city. It happens quite regularly. And today, according to the Ukrainian authorities, those passenger buses were hit by a guided bomb, which suggests that the attack was deliberate. And the images of the wreckage depict a very miserable story, because it looks like those passengers were trapped in the bus and they were burnt alive. And President Zelensky today said that the bodies that were recovered from the wreckage were burnt to such a degree that they were not even recognizable. And there is a sharp increase of civilian casualties in Ukraine. In fact, according to the UN, this year already the number of civilian casualties has exceeded the total number of civilian casualties that was registered last year. And just yesterday, there was another attack on a residential building in the city of Priluki, in Chernihiv region, where more than 20 people were killed.

And today, President Zelensky, the Foreign Secretary, Ed Miliband, visited that site. And again, it was a direct hit by a missile, and the residential building was destroyed.

Charlotte Gallagher (3:20)

And, Abdel Jalil, as winter approaches, how are the Russian strikes intensifying?

Abdul Jalil Abdur-Rasulov (3:25)

The Russians are trying now to target the energy facilities again. They did that quite regularly in the past last year. When they hit the power plants and substations, they already started doing this kind of campaign again ahead of the coming winter. And already just yesterday, President Zelensky said that one of the targets of the attack that happened yesterday was the energy infrastructure of the country. So Russia continues launching this campaign, and Kiev says that they're basically trying to weaponise the weather in order to force the Kiev government to accept the peace deal that is favourable to Russia.

Charlotte Gallagher (4:01)

Abdul Jalil Abdur-Rasulof.

Next to the row between Britain and Israel, which escalated last month when the UK announced sanctions on goods from Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. All the settlements are illegal under international law. Israel has retaliated by announcing that the British consulate in East Jerusalem has been downgraded to a UK mission after threatening to close it completely. Gideon Saar is the Israeli foreign minister.

Gideon Saar (4:33)

We seek good relations with all countries around the world. However, any country that acts against Israel should understand that there will be a price to pay.

It will not benefit from such actions. On the contrary.

Charlotte Gallagher (4:47)

Our Middle East correspondent Yolan Nel spoke to me from outside to the British Consulate building.

Yolande Knell (4:52)

The signage for the British Consulate in Jerusalem was taken down from here. That was just ahead of the 30-day deadline that Israel had set for the British Consulate to completely cease its operations. There is still a British flag that is on display. And then in terms of explanation, because we had still seen a number of staff, apparently some Brits heading into the building without any comment, there was a long statement that was posted on social media by the Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sarr. And he was saying that Israel had established a clear principle that no country could act against Israel without Israel having an appropriate response. And he said measures had already been taken against the UK in retaliation for its announcement last month of these major sanctions on Israeli settlements in the Occupied West Bank. Now, he says, kind of buried in this long statement, that there will be seven diplomats, what he describes as a task force that will be allowed to stay at this building. He is insisting that the consulate remains closed, and says that this is a result of dialogue that has been going on, and the diplomats here, their work will have what he describes as a very limited scope. There was then quite a different message that came out, a briefer one from the British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband. He too was saying that the UK had stuck by its principles in the dialogue that had been going on, and that the UK does not recognize Israel's jurisdiction over this part of Jerusalem, occupied East Jerusalem, in accordance with international law. But he said too that there had to be conversations that took place with Israel about the security and the protection of this building. For the moment, he said, that a number of the diplomats with their families, the diplomats who are working here, they have left for their own safety. But he said that there would be staff that would carry on what he called vital services to the Palestinian people, because it has been the British Consulate in Jerusalem that has really been responsible for that communication with the Palestinian people, but also Palestinian officials, whether in the West Bank or in the Gaza Strip.