Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Wednesday condemned Russian attacks on civilians in a phone call with his Ukrainian counterpart, Andrii Sybiha, according to a statement on X from Jerusalem’s top diplomat.
He also “expressed solidarity with the people of Ukraine” and “conveyed our hope that an agreement will soon be reached to end the war.”
Just spoke with Ukrainian FM @andrii_sybiha.
— Gideon Sa'ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) January 28, 2026
I expressed our solidarity with the people of Ukraine and condemned the Russian attacks against civilians.
I conveyed our hope that an agreement will soon be reached to end the war.
We also discussed Iran's brutal massacre of its own… pic.twitter.com/MHbS1Aotgr
The condemnation came a day after a Russian drone strike hit a passenger train in northeastern Ukraine, killing at least five people and injuring others. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky denounced the attack as “an act of terrorism.” The attack comes amid other recent reported incidents of civilian casualties in the protracted conflict.
The number of soldiers killed, wounded or missing in Russia’s war on Ukraine could approach 2 million by spring, according to a new report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The think tank estimates that Russia has suffered about 1.2 million casualties, including up to 325,000 troop deaths, since the invasion began in February 2022—the highest losses for any major power since World War II. Ukraine’s casualties are estimated between 500,000 and 600,000, with as many as 140,000 deaths, according to the report, which was released on Tuesday.
Sa’ar and Sybiha also discussed “Iran’s brutal massacre of its own people by the Revolutionary Guards” during their conversation on Wednesday, with Sa’ar describing it as “one of the darkest events in the history of Iran and humanity,” while stressing “the need for Ukraine’s Parliament to designate the IRGC as a terror organization.”
The two ministers agreed to stay in close contact, according to Sa’ar.
