today at six, we're live in ukraine, where at least 50 people are dead and hundreds more injured, after rockets hit a train station, in the east of the country. it happened as thousands of people were trying to escape heavy fighting in the region. russia denies any involvement. can see the effect of the blast on the cars behind me now burnt out and on the pavement you can see bags of food they were taking for their journey to safety, along with dried blood that's smeared across the pavement. meanwhile, the president of the european commission, sees for herself the horrors of the war in the city of bucha, as britain and germany agree more military aid for the ukrainian army. and the other main stories

on the programme this evening: the man who killed the primary school teacher sabina nessa in london last september is jailed for life for her murder. as a fourth jab is rolled out for people over 75, covid infections in the uk show signs of levelling off — after a record high. more questions for the chancellor rishi sunak — under pressure over his wife's tax status — now it's revealed he held a us green card for work — for 18 months while chancellor. and the queen will not attend the royal maundy church service at windsor next thursday — the prince of wales and the duchess of cornwall will attend instead. and coming up on the bbc news channel: we're live from aintree in sportsday, looking ahead to tomorrow's grand national where crowds are back for the first time in three years.

good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six, live from the ukrainian capital, kyiv, with news of missiles hitting a train station packed full of people in the east of the country. at least 50 are dead, including five children, while many more are injured. the station in the city of kramatorsk had become a major hub in the war for civilian evacuations from the donbas region, which has seen fighting by russian separatists for many years, and is now the focal point of vladimir putin's war effort. it's thought around 4,000 people were in and around the station when the missiles hit. most of them women, children, and the elderly. russia denies any involvement. borisjohnson says it's a war crime to attack civilians. 0ur defence correspondent, jonathan beale, has the very latest from kramatorsk.

a warning — you may find his report distressing. all they were trying to do was to flee the city to safety. but many never made it out. these were the scenes outside kramatorsk�*s station soon after the explosion killing at least a0 people including ten children. hundreds more were injured. the emergency services were soon on the scene, collecting the bodies and taking the injured to hospital. the belongings they were carrying with and the journey —— for the journey still strewn across the floor. translation: i the journey still strewn across the floor. translation:— the journey still strewn across the floor. translation: i “umped into the passage — floor. translation: i “umped into the passage where _ floor. translation: ijumped into the passage where there _ floor. translation: ijumped into the passage where there are - floor. translation: ijumped intoj the passage where there are walls. everyone was panicking. people were screaming and crying then i saw a wounded woman. she was bleeding heavily. she was taken somewhere into a room. there were also several wounded people there. i saw people lying in front of the building. i

don't know whether they were wounded or dead. �* ,, �* don't know whether they were wounded or dead-_ peeple - don't know whether they were wounded or dead._ people were i or dead. translation: people were anicked or dead. translation: people were panicked and — or dead. translation: people were panicked and distressed, _ or dead. translation: people were panicked and distressed, some - or dead. translation: people were panicked and distressed, some of. panicked and distressed, some of them _ panicked and distressed, some of them were — panicked and distressed, some of them were badly wounded and we tried to help _ them were badly wounded and we tried to help them. them were badly wounded and we tried to help them-— to help them. close by, the remains of a missile — to help them. close by, the remains of a missile lay _ to help them. close by, the remains of a missile lay on _ to help them. close by, the remains of a missile lay on the _ to help them. close by, the remains of a missile lay on the ground. - of a missile lay on the ground. written on the casing in russia were the words for the children. it is not determined where it came from. it is difficult to say definitively, it is thought likely to be a russian missile fired indiscriminately. over the past few days, this has been the scene at kramatorsk station. thousands of people trying to get out. they've been told by the authorities to leave as russia steps up authorities to leave as russia steps up its offensive in eastern ukraine. where cities and towns have been targeted. as you can see, the station outside is empty. this morning it was packed with people. many of them women and children, trying to flee the city to safety. you can see the effects of the blast

on these parked cars behind me, now burnt out and on the pavement, you can see bags of food that they were taking for theirjourney can see bags of food that they were taking for their journey to safety. along with dried blood that's smeared across the pavement. now, russia denies responsibility for this missile strike. but we do know that in the past few days, they have targeted this city with artillery and air strikes. ukraine's president zelensky has little doubt that russia is responsible. he dismissed its denials and described it as an evil that has no limits. the region's governor said he believed that cluster munitions were used, banned by many countries. the carnage was certainly spread over a wide area. and britain says that if this was a deliberate attack on civilians, then it amounts to a war crime. jonathan beale, bbc news. kramatorsk.

international efforts to isolate russia are continuing. borisjohnson announced that the uk is sending another £100 million worth of military equipment, including surface to air missiles and anti—tank weapons. the prime minister was holding talks with the german chancillor, olaf scholz, at downing street, while the the eu president, ursula von de leyen, has been visiting ukraine to offer her support. our diplomatic correspondent paul adams reports. in bucha, a chance to ponder the brutal realities of this war. ursula von der leyen, president of the european commission, in the town where ukraine says hundreds of civilians were killed by russian troops. the whole world is mourning with the people of bucha. and they are the ones who are, as you said, defending the border of europe, defending humanity, defending democracy. and, therefore, we stand with them. today, slovakia became the first country to send a major air defence system,

the soviet—era s300. with a major russian offensive looming, this is one of several new moves to supply ukraine with the kind of equipment it says it badly needs. in downing street, with germany's new chancellor by his side, borisjohnson said britain was also doing more. today i can announce that the uk will send a further £100 million worth of high—grade military equipment to ukraine's armed forces, including more starstreak anti—aircraft missiles, which fly at three times the speed of sound, another 800 anti—tank missiles and precision munitions capable of lingering in the sky until directed to their target. and two days ago, another first. the czech republic have sent a fleet of russian—made battle tanks. the ukrainians know the t—72 well and can use it with no extra training. russian military wreckage

litters the roads where they've been and gone. ukraine's armed forces have fought tenaciously and with great skill. but most believe sterner tests lie ahead. will all the equipment arrive in time, and will it be enough? and could the west do more on the economic front? the german chancellor facing difficult questions about his country's continued reliance on russian oil and gas. do you really think that germany has gone far enough, fast enough, to move away from russian energy? i can give you the very clear answer. we are doing the strongest investments and we are doing the hardest activities feasible to get independent, and we will be successful. britain is also bolstering nato. the defence secretary, ben wallace, in romania today, offering two more raf typhoonjets. whoever wins the war in ukraine, nato's presence in eastern europe has been utterly transformed by this war. paul adams, bbc news.

russia invaded ukraine just six weeks ago, but in that time, whole districts have been destroyed, there's possible evidence of war crimes being committed, and more than ten million people have been forced to leave their homes. the war is transforming the nation. jeremy bowen has been reporting on the conflict for more than a month, and he's sent us this report. a warning, it does contain, some upsetting scenes. this man went back to the place where his daughter was killed. the war has changed everything for ukrainians. translation why did you burn her? these ashes, he says, are all that's left. she was a doctor, his only child. she was picking up medicines at a humanitarian centre when it was

destroyed in one of russia's last attacks before the retreat from kyiv. in early march, the expectation was a russian advance into the capital. not a withdrawal. to escape it, thousands crossed into kyiv over the ruins of a bridge the ukrainians had destroyed to slow the russians down. 11 million people, about a quarter of ukraine's population, have been forced from their homes, so far. explosions it took hard fighting for the ukrainians to win the battle of kyiv, the first battle. there could be another. as they directed the defence of the capital, generals explained how russian armour was getting bogged down and attacked in marshy ground. ukrainian willingness to fight and die upended every prediction of a swift russian victory. men under 60 have to stay

to fight but everyone i've met is a willing volunteer. we followed two students, maxim aged 19 and his friend, demetrio, who is 18, since they signed up just after the invasion. i 18, since they signed up 'ust after the invasion.* 18, since they signed up 'ust after the invasion.�* the invasion. i am studying the economy- _ the invasion. i am studying the economy. and _ the invasion. i am studying the economy. and i— the invasion. i am studying the economy. and i am _ the invasion. i am studying the economy. and i am studying i the invasion. i am studying the - economy. and i am studying biology. they looked — economy. and i am studying biology. they looked like _ economy. and i am studying biology. they looked like friends _ economy. and i am studying biology. they looked like friends off _ economy. and i am studying biology. they looked like friends off to - economy. and i am studying biology. they looked like friends off to a - they looked like friends off to a festival except they had weapons. kyiv was turned into a fortress in a remarkable feat of national mobilisation. demetriou and maxim's military career started on the checkpoints and since then, they have seen active service, fighting on the front line. and then there is the volodymyr zelenskyy effect. that's why i ask you to stand against — that's why i ask you to stand against the _ that's why i ask you to stand against the war. _ that's why i ask you to stand against the war.— that's why i ask you to stand against the war. the ukrainian resident against the war. the ukrainian president ditching _ against the war. the ukrainian president ditching his - against the war. the ukrainian president ditching his suit - against the war. the ukrainian president ditching his suit for. against the war. the ukrainian i president ditching his suit for the army green and sharing his people's

dangers is sharpening ukrainian identity and independence in the eyes of the world. just before russia pulled back from kyiv it hit a big food warehouse. the invasion means ukraine, once on the edge of europe and european minds is now centrestage. this is a world crisis notjust because the russians have driven a tank through international law or because of what they're doing to civilians although that matters a great deal. it's because the world's biggest military power is armed with nuclear weapons have come closer to a potential direct confrontation than at any time since the cold war. the world has seen the damage inflicted on the russians by motivated, well led ukrainian troops armed with nato weapons. this was

bucha. butjust as plain are the risks of escalation if nato gives the ukrainian for much more deadly weapons they've requested. the head of ukrainian military intelligence says the dangers of not confronting putin two russia are much worse. translation:— translation: this is the war of aggression _ translation: this is the war of aggression in — translation: this is the war of aggression in the _ translation: this is the war of aggression in the heart - translation: this is the war of aggression in the heart of - translation: this is the war of. aggression in the heart of europe. it completely destroys the world two existing political and military institutions. if the world swallows putin's aggression and offers no radical solution, putin's aggression and offers no radicalsolution, it putin's aggression and offers no radical solution, it will be repeated over and over again. russian atrocities are helping ukraine win the argument in the west. we saw dead bodies some definitely civilians, left when they were killed by the russians. and after they killed iriina's only son, she had to bury him in the garden on

her own. the young soldiers, maxim and demetrio are back in kyiv and like all ukrainians, they believe they're in the fight of their lives. i think we are fighting not only for our country's life, we are fighting for the life of the whole civilised world. ., , ., . ., for the life of the whole civilised | world-_ yeah. for the life of the whole civilised - world.— yeah, i've world. have you changed? yeah, i've become, world. have you changed? yeah, i've become. like. _ world. have you changed? yeah, i've become, like, more _ world. have you changed? yeah, i've become, like, more systematic, - become, like, more systematic, probably — become, like, more systematic, probably. and, unfortunately, more ruthless _ probably. and, unfortunately, more ruthless. , ., probably. and, unfortunately, more ruthless. , , ruthless. they are buying the new rear ruthless. they are buying the new . ear the ruthless. they are buying the new gear they will _ ruthless. they are buying the new gear they will need _ ruthless. they are buying the new gear they will need when - ruthless. they are buying the new gear they will need when they - ruthless. they are buying the new gear they will need when they are j gear they will need when they are rotated into the battles of the east in a few days. it rotated into the battles of the east in a few days-— in a few days. it costs more. a warrior- _ in a few days. it costs more. a warrior. morale _ in a few days. it costs more. a warrior. morale is _ in a few days. it costs more. a warrior. morale is high. - in a few days. it costs more. a warrior. morale is high. so - in a few days. it costs more. a l warrior. morale is high. so other risks. warrior. morale is high. so other risks- this _ warrior. morale is high. so other risks. this was _ warrior. morale is high. so other risks. this was the _ warrior. morale is high. so other risks. this was the funeral - warrior. morale is high. so other risks. this was the funeral for i warrior. morale is high. so other risks. this was the funeral for a l risks. this was the funeral for a volunteer who did not survive the battle for kyiv. this war looks as if it will be long and hard. gunfire

if it's a fight to the finish between putin two presidency and ukraine's independence, everyone, the wider world included, faces even worse danger —— putin's presidency. jeremy bowen, bbc news, kyiv. jeremy bowen and his reflections on aa days of battle. the war here has seen millions of people flee their homes seeking safety and shelter, and the trains have been a lifeline. the staff on the railways, throughout my time reporting this story, have been proud they've kept the carriages moving, despite everything. very proud. to deliberately target the network by attacking a major station — if that's proved — would be a new low in an already despicable war. that's it from me and the team here in kyiv, now back to you in the studio. thank you very much, clive. clive

myrie there. here in the uk, the home secretary, priti patel, has apologised for the visa delays which have prevented thousands of ukrainians fleeing the violence from entering the country. new figures show that a1,000 visas for ukrainians have now been issued, and a total of 12,000 refugees have arrived in the country — that's in stark contrast to the hundreds of thousands who've been accepted in some european nations. our home editor mark easton has more. the welcome flags are out in north devon, in private gardens, and public buildings. the blue and yellow of ukraine illustrating a deep desire here to help those fleeing a war more than 1,500 miles away. chris tattersall is a local apple farmer and cider producer got farmer and cider producer who got in touch with the ukrainian consulate to say he wanted to welcome a family of refugees. he was put in touch with eleanor, her elderly parents and nine—year—old son five weeks ago. they are still surviving on hand—outs in poland. right, so this is the room

where they will be staying. i think it will be perfect. devon generosity, though, is being thwarted by whitehall bureaucracy. if we can get the visa. it's taken chris weeks to navigate the forms and documents required by the government, including getting a passport for anna the cat. it's a sham excuse for slowing the process down, and i don't know why the government wants to slow it down. they are people who are desperate. there are families sleeping on park benches in freezing temperatures in poland. why? on a visit to the ukrainian institute in london, i asked the home secretary about the hold—ups in getting war refugees to the uk. just 12,500 have arrived so far. priti patel speaking before today's figures were finalised, suggested it might only be 10,000. so, completely, it's been frustrating. will you apologise? i apologise with frustration myself, and i've spoken about those previously too. it takes time, mark.

10,000, do you reckon, have arrived from ukraine? in germany it's 300,000. in ireland its 17,000. why is britain playing catch up? so, mark, if i may politelyjust say this isn't about catch up and this is not about comparing us to other countries. why? well, first and foremost because we have an uncapped scheme. we demand visas, other countries don't. so, that is because they are eu member state countries. so we have left the eu and it's right that we document people that come to our country. back in devon, chris's wife anne showed me the e—mails from people who want to support her charity auction for ukraine. i've been inundated with offers - of help, and unlike this government who've dressed everything up with platitudes and barriers, i saying we stand with ukraine. the community here in torrington,

and north devon, we really do - stand by the ukrainians. for north devon, read the uk, the country moved by the awful stories unfolding on the other side of europe, but often exasperated by what people see as unnecessary red tape. mark easton, bbc news, devon. it's been revealed that the chancellor, rishi sunak, who's been under pressure over his wife's tax status, held a us green card which allowed him permanent residency there while he was a member of the government here. mr sunak returned the card last year, ahead of his first trip to america as a minister. our political correspondent iain watson is at westminster for us. how significant is this revelation? certainly rishi sunak�*s opponents seem to think it is. he held a green card which gives him the right to permanent residency in the united states for his first 18 months as chancellor, so in short, that means that he, the person responsible for uk tax policy, was required to fill in a us tax return. tonight labour are asking whether this gave him any tax advantages. the treasury say no,

they say all laws and rules are followed and full taxes were paid. labour are asking questions and the liberal democrats have already made up liberal democrats have already made up their mind. don't cringe, but what they say is the man with the green card should be shown a red card because they claim rishi sunak must resign. the mere fact that the chancellor in charge of our tax policy had permanent residency rights elsewhere, they say, is a conflict of interests, and some of the chancellor's own conservative colleagues tonight are also dismayed because they think the greater the focus on rishi sunak and his wife's tax affairs at the very moment when everyone else is going to be paying more tax, is the last thing that they need. more tax, is the last thing that they need-— more tax, is the last thing that the need. . . ., . ~' they need. iain watson, thank you. the time is — they need. iain watson, thank you. the time is 6:20pm. _ our top story this evening. many people have died as a rocket has hit a train in ukraine.

anticipation builds for the grand national and fans wait to see if jockey of the moment rachel blackmore can make it back to back wins. coming up in sportsday on the bbc news channel — tiger's back on the prowl at augusta. but can he stay in touch of leaders on day two of the masters? a 36—year—old albanian man has been jailed for a minimum of 36 years in prison for the murder of the primary school teacher, sabina nessa. of the primary school koci selamaj drove from eastbourne to south—east london last september and attacked ms nessa with a metal traffic triangle. our home affairs correspondent june kelly reports. sabina nessa, graduate, primary school teacher, the second in a family of four girls, and fun loving. now her older sisterjebina

cherishes the watch sabina was wearing when she was killed. this is her watch that she wore on the night, so i'm just holding it to feel close to her. people say time will get easier but really time just gets harder, and the realisation that she is not herejust kind of hits home. the killer, koci selamaj, refused to come to court for sentencing. the family had seen him at previous hearings. the thought that he was waiting for some woman to attack her and do what he wanted to do, i was just thinking what a horrible animal, vile animal, he is. hours before the murder he checked into the grand hotel in eastbourne. his wife who had left him because of his violent behaviour worked here. she met him in the hotel car park and he asked her to have sex with him. after she rejected him he drove off

alone and ended up miles away in kidbrooke in south—east london, intent on violence against a woman. he targeted sabina nessa as she was walking through the nearby park on her way to meet a friend. cameras in the park showed koci selamaj running towards sabina and attacking her. he beat her 3a times with this metal traffic triangle and carried her off unconscious. her body was found the following day. selamaj had strangled her. there was clear evidence of a sexually motivated attack that, together with the fact that he had propositioned his wife earlier in the day for sex, says to me, without a shadow of a doubt, that was a sexually motivated murder. a week later selamaj, an albanian national, was arrested, here being told over the phone by an interpreter he's been charged.

today sabina's family left the old bailey with hugs for the police team. i feel like the sunflower because that was her favourite. i feel like that kind of resembles her. she would stand up to and give her opinion and i feel like we should all stand up and say, "enough is enough, let's put an end to male violence." june kelly, bbc news. covid infection rates in the uk are showing signs of levelling off after last week's record high, according to the latest estimates from the office for national statistics. figures for the week ending april 2nd suggest there were a.88 million cases of the virus, down slightly from a.91 million the week before. our medical editor fergus walsh explains. a slight glimmer of hope, fergus? glimmer but we are still in the grip of the biggest covid wave of this pandemic. the ons reckons that last week won in 13 people in the uk had covid. tens of millions of us have had omicron, and while it is milder

foremost, there are around 20,000 covid patients in hospital, the highest numberfor about covid patients in hospital, the highest number for about a year. half of them, more than half, were admitted with something else. people are not tending to need intensive care, treatments have improved, but there are around 1300 covid—related deaths a year, which is why vaccines remain crucial. more than 7 million over 75s are eligible for a spring booster which will top up any waning immunity. booster which will top up any waning immuni . , ., , booster which will top up any waning immuni . , . , ., disruption at airports and at the port of dover is continuing the snp says next month's elections in scotland are a chance to "send a message to boris johnson". at the launch of her party's campaign, nicola sturgeon said the vote came amid what she called a "tory—made cost—of—living crisis". she promised her councillors would focus on the issue if elected. we need to see borisjohnson and rishi sunak wake up and start to take serious action to help people here. and this council election is an opportunity for people to send that message to them

loudly and clearly. the welsh nationalist party, plaid cymru, has launched its welsh election campaign with a pledge to extend free school meals to all pupils. the party leader, adam price, who unveiled their manifesto, said that housing and safeguarding jobs and incomes were also key priorities. free school meals, free childcare, these radical policies would not have happened if it wasn't for plaid cymru. and that's a flavour, if you like, at a national level of the difference that we can make in communities throughout wales if we are able to run more local authorities following the may 5th elections. the queen has pulled out of attending the annual royal maundy day church service. buckingham palace said she would be represented for the first time by the prince of wales and the duchess of cornwall. our royal correspondent nicholas witchell is with me. what's the palace saying? they are not saying why but i think we must assume it is because of the

mobility issues. i don't think it signifies any significant change in the health situation, she's been doing virtual audiences in the last few days. maundy thursday is a fixture in the calendar. it involves rather more participation, whereas the service of thanksgiving for the duke of edinburgh at westminster abbey she was able to sit through the service. at the maundy service there is more standing distributing there is more standing distributing the maundy money, so the decision taken today that she will not attend at her place taken by the prince of wales and duchess of cornwall. hick. wales and duchess of cornwall. nick, thanks very much. _ the three—time wimbledon champion boris becker has been found guilty of four charges related to his bankruptcy in 2017. appearing at southwark crown court in london he was accused of hiding millions of pounds worth of assets, including two wimbledon trophies, to avoid paying his debts. he was cleared of 20 other charges. the 5a—year—old was bailed and must return to court for sentencing on 29th april.

tomorrow sees the biggest event in the horse—racing calendar — the grand national. rachael blackmore will be back in the saddle, after making history last year by becoming the first female jockey to win the race. and it's the first time in three years that spectators will be able to attend the event in person due to the pandemic. our sports correspondent laura scott is at aintree for us. the last race of the day he has been run but as you might be able to hear, the ladies day parties are still in full flow. tomorrow at aintree, all eyes are on the world's most famousjump race, the grand national. there is due to be a sell—out cloud of 70,000 people meaning it will be an entirely different experience for the jockeys to this time last year. —— sell—out crowd. rachael blackmore says she's lost count of the times she's watched back last year's grand national when she became the first woman to win the prestigious race. commentator: rachael blackmore raises the bar still higher! _ this year the atmosphere will be bigger, the task

even tougher, but she is confident she can repeat the feat. incredible memories from last year and so we will try our best to get some more this year. he really enjoyed it around here last year, he jumped from fence to fence, and he has more weight on his back this year but i _ just hope he jumps around well. you never know what will happen next. horses trained in ireland have dominated the race in recent years, with ten of the first 11 home last year. britain's main hopes this year lie with a horse who has previously shown a liking for these iconic fences, and whose unusual story has earned her an ever growing following. snow leopardess is nicknamed the queen at home, but if she is to reign supreme at aintree she will need to defy the statistics. she'd be only the fourth grey horse to win, and the first mare in 71 years. but more remarkable is the fact she's a mother, the first known to have lined up in the race. a lot of people doubted us. sometimes the mares don't

come back with the same i hardness having had a foal. but she certainly has. she certainly got a great chance and i really can't wait _ she's certainly got a great chance and i really can't wait _ to see her run over them. probably going to be the most terrifying ten minutes of my life, i would say, and i am worried a little bit about her going to it. but she's so brave and so good. this most unpredictable race rarely follows the script, but there is the potential for yet more history. this time with crowds there to witness it. laura scott, bbc news. time for a look at the weather. here's chris fawkes. we have seen lots of showers today and one of them, this weather watcher picture, from one of your namesakes, sent in northern england around the oldham area. that wasn't the only one of these hail pictures we have seen, we have seen a number of these hailstorms particularly across the north of england but some in wales and scotland, the hail coming from

these massive cumulonimbus