40 dead after Russian strike hits school in Ukraine's east

A school in Komyshuvakha, in the Zaporizhzhia region, took a direct hit on Monday. Zelenskyy confirmed 40 people are now dead—he called it "insane." The toll keeps climbing as rescue workers pull bodies from the rubble.

Meanwhile, Moscow's playing politics again. The Kremlin wants everyone to know it's hoping the US midterm results won't mess with what they're calling Trump's "peacemaking efforts" on Ukraine. Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesperson, told Russian state media they're "sincerely counting on" Trump to keep going with those peace talks.

The timing's awkward, obviously. A school full of kids gets obliterated, and the Kremlin's worried about election cycles in Washington. That's basically the vibe right now in the whole conflict.

European officials are watching the US results closely too, but for different reasons. One European politician noted that governing America will be "almost impossible in the coming years" given the polarization. From a European standpoint, they're mainly eyeing trade policies, continued support for Ukraine, and NATO commitments.

So we're stuck in this weird moment. Russia's bombing schools and simultaneously hoping US domestic politics don't change the game. Ukraine's counting casualties. Europe's nervous about what happens next in Washington. Nobody's talking about actually stopping the fighting—just who'll fund it and for how long.