Ukraine hits passenger train in Russian-controlled Crimea, killing one

A Ukrainian drone attack hit a passenger train on the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, killing an assistant driver and injuring the driver, Sergei Aksyonov, the Moscow-appointed head of Crimea, said on Telegram on Monday.

The train was hit on the Moscow-Simferopol route, he said.

"Passengers were not injured," Aksyonov said. Train services were temporarily suspended.

All trains on the route were evacuated and passengers transported onward by bus, the rail company Grand Service Express said on Telegram. Last week, authorities said a Ukrainian drone attack on a local train left one person dead and two injured.

Blow to a tourism region

The renewed attack is also hitting the hotel and catering industry in Crimea hard.

Experts expect 3 to 4 million tourists to stay away this year from the peninsula popular with Russians amid ongoing Ukrainian attacks, the Moscow newspaper Kommersant reported, citing numerous cancellations and declining booking figures.

Another reason for the absent holidaymakers is fuel rationing at petrol stations, which is deterring many motorists from travelling to Crimea.

Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 and also uses it as a staging area for its troops in its war against Ukraine. Kiev says the drone attacks are primarily intended to disrupt military supplies. The country has been defending itself against a full-scale Russian invasion for more than four years.