At least 21 people have been injured in Kharkiv after Vladimir Putin’s forces dropped a deadly glide bomb on an apartment block.
An eight-year-old was injured in the attack and 60 people were evacuated from the building as Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky again urged Western allies for long-range missile capabilities.
It comes as Ukraine’s foreign minister Andriy Sybiha warned Moscow was planning strikes on Ukraine’s nuclear facilities before the winter.
“According to Ukrainian intelligence, the Kremlin is preparing strikes on Ukrainian nuclear energy critical objects ahead of winter,” Mr Sybiha wrote on X.
He urged the International Atomic Energy Agency and Ukraine’s allies to establish permanent monitoring missions at the country’s nuclear plants.
“This is preparation for a possible nuclear disaster scenario. Russia is a terrorist,” Andriy Yermak, president Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff wrote on Telegram.
On the other side of the border, Russia evacuated over 1,000 people from Krasnodar in the wake of a Ukrainian drone attack on Saturday.
Key Points
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Russian strike on apartment block in Kharkiv injures 21
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Ukraine’s air defence units destroy 71 Russian drones overnight
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Russia planning strikes on Ukraine’s nuclear facilities, says Kyiv
Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK gives surprise speech at Labour party conference
03:43 , Alex Croft
In a surprise speech on the main stage, Ukrainian ambassador Valerii Zaluzhnyi thanked the government for their support.
“I want to take this opportunity to thank the Prime Minister, the Foreign Secretary and the Defence Secretary for their commitment to the Ukrainian people,” he said.
“The Labour Party has a long history of opposing fascism and terrorism.”
“It was [Labour wartime minister Ernest] Bevin who understood the importance of strength… Bevin’s legacy includes the founding of NATO, the cornerstone of European security.
“He would have understood the urgent need for Ukraine’s fast-track membership of Nato as a necessity that should be recognised.”
Exclusive report: The downfall of Putin is inevitable, says freed dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza
02:45 , Alex Croft
The fall of Putin is inevitable, says freed dissident Vladimir Kara Murza
Two dead in mine after Russian strike causes fire
01:35 , Alex Croft
Two female mine workers were found dead after a Russian strike in the Donetsk region caused a fire.
One more person was taken to hospital following the strike, which forced 371 workers to evacuate.
The fire was above the mine and did not enter go underground, the ministry noted according to Ukrainian Pravda.
Ukraine’s Energy Ministry did not specify the location of the attack but the Governor of the Donetsk region, Vadym Filashkin, said early on Sunday that two people had been killed and one injured in Udachne, the Kyiv Independent reported.
The village of Udachne, 12 kilometres west of Pokrovsk – one of the main battlegrounds in recent weeks – is home to one of the largest coal mines in Ukraine.
Russia says firefighter killed by Ukrainian drone in Moscow-controlled Luhansk region
Monday 23 September 2024 00:23 , Alex Croft
A firefighter was killed by a Ukrainian drone in Russia-controlled Luhansk region in the eastern Ukraine, the Russian Emergencies Ministry said on Sunday.
The drone’s explosives detonated when Vyacheslav Glazunov, 33, was extinguishing a fire in the Novoaidar district triggered by fallen drones, the ministry said on Telegram.
Watch: Arms depot ablaze deep inside Russia after massive Ukrainian drone attack
Sunday 22 September 2024 23:10 , Alex Croft
An arms depot in Russia’s south-western region of Krasnodar appeared to have been hit in a massive Ukrainian drone attack overnight on Friday 20 September, as verified footage on social media showed explosions at the scene.
Other attacks were also reported in occupied Crimea and the Tver region, northwest of Moscow, and Russia’s defence ministry said its forces had shot down more than 100 drones.
I’ve witnessed first-hand the horrific cost of Putin’s war – as casualties hit 1 million
Sunday 22 September 2024 22:01 , Alex Croft
I’ve witnessed first-hand the horrific cost of Putin’s war – as casualties hit 1m
Full report: West must show ‘guts and nerve’ in helping Ukraine, says Lammy
Sunday 22 September 2024 21:03 , Nina Lloyd
West must show ‘guts and nerve’ in helping Ukraine, says Lammy
Ukraine’s air defence units destroy 71 Russian drones overnight
Sunday 22 September 2024 20:04 , Alex Croft
Ukraine’s air defence units destroyed 71 out of 80 attack drones that Russia launched overnight, Ukraine’s air force said this morning.
Additionally, six more of the Russian drones were lost after getting neutralised by Ukraine’s electronic warfare, the air force said.
Russia also launched two guided missiles from occupied parts of Ukraine’s Luhansk region, the air force said but did not mention if they were intercepted.
David Lammy calls for ‘guts and nerve’ in facing Putin
Sunday 22 September 2024 19:15 , Alex Croft
Allies must show “nerve” in their support for Ukraine, foreign secretary David Lammy said Sunday at the Labour party conference.
Speaking at a fringe event alongside Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, he said: “This is a critical time for nerve and for guts and for patience and for fortitude on behalf of allies who stand with Ukraine.”
“I am not going to, as Foreign Secretary, of course, comment on operational detail, because that can only aid Putin.
“But there is a very real-time discussion across allies about how we can support Ukraine as we head into the winter.”
“I think we have to recognise Putin’s bullying bluster and rhetoric for what it is: a sort of deliberate psychological warfare that is usually indicative of his own fears about losing this ridiculous and horrendous bloody escapade of his.
“He tends to throw dust up in the eyes.”
Report: Over 20 people wounded after Russia strikes apartment blocks in Ukraine’s Kharkiv
Sunday 22 September 2024 18:37 , Alex Croft
Russian strikes hit high-rise apartment blocks in Ukraine’s Kharkiv, leaving dozens wounded in a second consecutive nighttime attack this week.
The bombs fell Saturday night on the district of Shevchenkivsky, in Ukraine’s northeast, local Gov. Oleh Syniehubov said. Residential 16 and 9-storied buildings were destroyed, and seven more buildings were damaged, he added.
Twenty-one people were wounded, including an eight-year-old, two 17-year-olds and several older adults, according to Syniehubov and Kharkiv mayor Ihor Terekhov.
Samya Kullab reports:
Over 20 people wounded after Russia strikes apartment blocks in Ukraine’s Kharkiv
Russian strike damages 18 apartment buildings in Kharkiv
Sunday 22 September 2024 17:50 , Alex Croft
The strike destroyed windows, water and electricity supplies last night (September 21).
Two people were left seriously injured while “many more” needed medical help, according to Kharkiv mayor Ihor Terekhov.
One house suffered serious damage with the structure of the building displaced.
Mr Terekhov said: “State services and volunteers are actively attempting to deal with the effects of the attack.
“Namely, they are covering the broken windows. We check all the communications. Water and electricity supply has been restored in several buildings.
“We will restore everything. Unfortunately, many people needed medical help. Two of the victims are seriously injured.”
NATO jets intercept six Russian aircraft flying over Baltic Sea
Sunday 22 September 2024 17:10 , Alex Croft
Russian aircraft were flying over the Baltic Sea without transponders or a flight plan, the Latvian Air Force reported last night.
Transponders are a device which helps air traffic in international airspace remain safe – and it is not uncommon for Russian jets to enter Baltic airspace with them turned off.
The jets were escorted by NATO Eurofighter jets as part of NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission, the Latvian Air Force said according to the Kyiv Independent.
In August, German pilots reported that Russian planes detected heading towards Latvian airspace were behaving “uncooperatively but not aggressively” when the Baltic Air Policing mission intercepted them.
In August, the German Air Force reported that Russian pilots who were detected heading toward Latvian airspace “behaved uncooperatively but not aggressively” when intercepted by NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission.
Pictured: Severe damage after Russia strikes Kharkiv
Sunday 22 September 2024 16:25 , Alex Croft
Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK gives surprise speech at Labour party conference
Sunday 22 September 2024 15:53 , Alex Croft
In a surprise speech on the main stage, Ukrainian ambassador Valerii Zaluzhnyi thanked the government for their support.
“I want to take this opportunity to thank the Prime Minister, the Foreign Secretary and the Defence Secretary for their commitment to the Ukrainian people,” he said.
“The Labour Party has a long history of opposing fascism and terrorism.”
“It was [Labour wartime minister Ernest] Bevin who understood the importance of strength… Bevin’s legacy includes the founding of NATO, the cornerstone of European security.
“He would have understood the urgent need for Ukraine’s fast-track membership of Nato as a necessity that should be recognised.”
Kremlin prisoner-swap exclusive: How I survived 11 months in Putin’s gulag
Sunday 22 September 2024 15:30 , Alexander Butler
Vladimir Kara-Murza: How I survived 11 months of torture in Putin’s gulag
Two dead in mine after Russian strike causes fire
Sunday 22 September 2024 15:15 , Alex Croft
Two female mine workers were found dead after a Russian strike in the Donetsk region caused a fire.
One more person was taken to hospital following the strike, which forced 371 workers to evacuate.
The fire was above the mine and did not enter go underground, the ministry noted according to Ukrainian Pravda.
Ukraine’s Energy Ministry did not specify the location of the attack but the Governor of the Donetsk region, Vadym Filashkin, said early on Sunday that two people had been killed and one injured in Udachne, the Kyiv Independent reported.
The village of Udachne, 12 kilometres west of Pokrovsk – one of the main battlegrounds in recent weeks – is home to one of the largest coal mines in Ukraine.
Watch: Arms depot ablaze deep inside Russia after massive Ukrainian drone attack
Sunday 22 September 2024 14:29 , Alexander Butler
An arms depot in Russia’s south-western region of Krasnodar appeared to have been hit in a massive Ukrainian drone attack overnight on Friday 20 September, as verified footage on social media showed explosions at the scene.
Other attacks were also reported in occupied Crimea and the Tver region, northwest of Moscow, and Russia’s defence ministry said its forces had shot down more than 100 drones.
Glide bombs, missiles and drones: The aerial bombardment raining down on Ukraine’s troops around Kharkiv
Sunday 22 September 2024 12:30 , Alexander Butler
Glide bombs, missiles and drones rain down on Ukraine’s troops around Kharkiv
Russian strike on apartment block in Kharkiv injures 21
Sunday 22 September 2024 11:22 , Alexander Butler
Russian forces struck a multi-storey apartment building in Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, on Saturday evening, wounding 21 people and prompting an evacuation of some of its residents, Mayor Ihor Terekhov said.
Kharkiv, 30 km (18 miles) from the Russian border, has been a frequent target of Moscow’s attacks since the Kremlin’s troops launched their February 2022 invasion of its smaller neighbour.
Terekhov, writing on the Telegram messaging app, said the Russians had deployed a guided bomb and that 60 residents had been evacuated from the building. An 8-year-old and two 17-year-olds were among the wounded, he added.
The downfall of Putin is inevitable, says freed dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza
Sunday 22 September 2024 10:03 , Alexander Butler
The fall of Putin is inevitable, says freed dissident Vladimir Kara Murza
Russia says firefighter killed by Ukrainian drone in Moscow-controlled Luhansk region
Sunday 22 September 2024 09:09 , Alexander Butler
A firefighter was killed by a Ukrainian drone in Russia-controlled Luhansk region in the eastern Ukraine, the Russian Emergencies Ministry said on Sunday.
The drone’s explosives detonated when Vyacheslav Glazunov, 33, was extinguishing a fire in the Novoaidar district triggered by fallen drones, the ministry said on Telegram.
Ukraine’s air defence units destroy 71 Russian drones overnight
Sunday 22 September 2024 07:18 , Arpan Rai
Ukraine’s air defence units destroyed 71 out of 80 attack drones that Russia launched overnight, Ukraine’s air force said this morning.
Additionally, six more of the Russian drones were lost after getting neutralised by Ukraine’s electronic warfare, the air force said.
Russia also launched two guided missiles from occupied parts of Ukraine’s Luhansk region, the air force said but did not mention if they were intercepted.
Russia says it downs 15 Ukrainian drones overnight
Sunday 22 September 2024 07:16 , Arpan Rai
Russia’s air defence units destroyed 15 drones that Ukraine launched overnight targeting the Russian territory, Russia’s defence ministry said this morning.
Of these, six drones were destroyed over the Sea of Azov, four over the Rostov region in Russia’s south and the rest over the Kursk, Astrakhan, Belgorod and Voronezh regions, the defence ministry said.
Ukraine says Russia planning strikes on nuclear facilities
Sunday 22 September 2024 07:00 , Alexander Butler
Ukraine’s foreign minister said on Saturday that Russia appeared to be planning strikes on Ukrainian nuclear facilities before the winter, urging the IAEA and Ukraine’s allies to establish permanent monitoring missions at the country’s nuclear plants.
“In particular, it concerns open distribution devices at (nuclear power plants and) transmission substations, critical for the safe operation of nuclear energy,” Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha wrote on X.
Ukraine says Russia is planning strikes on nuclear facilities
Sunday 22 September 2024 06:09 , Arpan Rai
Ukraine’s foreign minister says Russia is planning strikes on Ukrainian nuclear facilities before the winter.
“According to Ukrainian intelligence, (the) Kremlin is preparing strikes on Ukrainian nuclear energy critical objects ahead of winter,” foreign minister Andriy Sybiha wrote on X.
He also urged the UN’s nuclear watchdog and Ukraine’s allies to establish permanent monitoring missions at the country’s nuclear plants.
“In particular, it concerns open distribution devices at (nuclear power plants and) transmission substations, critical for the safe operation of nuclear energy.”
Mr Sybiha did not elaborate on why Kyiv believed such strikes were being prepared.
There was no immediate comment from Moscow. The UN’s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Ukrainian president’s chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, called for a swift global response to the purported threat of a strike on a nuclear facility.
“This is preparation for a possible nuclear disaster scenario. Russia is a terrorist,” he wrote on Telegram. “They must be stopped here and now. The countries of the West and the Global South must react harshly to preparations for terror.”
Ukraine has previously accused Russia of nuclear blackmail after Russian forces occupied the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest, in March 2022, early on in the invasion. Moscow denies that allegation.
Editorial: We must give Ukraine the tools it needs to finish the job
Sunday 22 September 2024 06:00 , Alexander Butler
We must give Ukraine the tools it needs to finish the job
Navalny ally calls on West to invest in Russia’s next generation to beat Putin
Sunday 22 September 2024 05:00 , Alexander Butler
Navalny ally calls on West to invest in Russia’s next generation to beat Putin
Ukraine says it hit two Russian munitions depots
Sunday 22 September 2024 04:27 , Arpan Rai
Ukraine says its forces have hit two Russian munition depots yesterday, in attacks that illustrated its growing capability to strike targets deep inside Russia.
Russian officials acknowledged the Ukrainian attack on one of the depots in southern Krasnodar region, saying it was carried out with drones. They introduced local emergency measures to mitigate the effects of the assault.
A statement by Ukraine’s military general staff said the munitions depots were at Tikhoretsk in Krasnodar region and Oktyabrsky in the western region of Tver.
“The (Tikhoretsk) facility is in the top three largest munitions storages of the occupiers, and is one of the key points in the Russian military logistical system,” the general staff wrote in a statement on Telegram.
It said Ukraine had information that a train carrying 2,000 tonnes of munitions, including from North Korea, had been on the territory of the depot at the time of the strike.
A Ukrainian security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said drones were used in the attacks.
The source said Ukraine‘s domestic SBU intelligence service hit the depot in Tikhoretsk in a joint operation with the Ukrainian military, while the SBU hit the target in Oktyabrsky on its own.
The SBU has conducted regular drone attacks deep inside Russia over the past year of the war.
Zelensky says end of war with Russia depends on allies’ resolve
Sunday 22 September 2024 04:21 , Arpan Rai
Volodymyr Zelensky said the end of Russia’s war on Ukraine depended on the “resolve” of Kyiv’s Western allies in providing needed weaponry and permission to use it.
Mr Zelensky, speaking in his nightly video address, thanked his military for a new strike on an arsenal in Russia, though he did not identify the location.
He also said his meetings next week in the United States were “crucial” to ensuring that Ukraine had the defence capabilities it needed.
“If we could direct all our precision towards defending our state, if there were enough missiles and permissions that partners could provide for this, the overall situation in the war would be better for our security,” the war-time president said.
He added: “The answer to the question ‘When will the war end?’ is actually in when our partners’ resolve will not lag behind what we can do for our defence, our independence, our victory.”
“Our clear strategy will be on the table of our partners. On the table of the president of the United States.”
Dozen injured in Russian missile strike on Kharkiv apartment
Sunday 22 September 2024 04:08 , Arpan Rai
At least 12 people were injured after Russian forces struck a multi-storey apartment building in Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv on Saturday evening, officials said.
The strike prompted an evacuation of some of its residents, mayor Ihor Terekhov said. The Russians had deployed a guided bomb, and that rescue operations were under way at the site, the mayor said.
He said many windows had been shattered and 60 residents had been evacuated from the building.
Regional governor Oleh Syniehubov said a child was among those injured. He said there had been two attacks on the city and a strike near the city of Izium, southeast of Kharkiv, which had set two private homes on fire.
Kharkiv, 30km (18 miles) from the Russian border, has been a frequent target of Moscow’s attacks since the Kremlin’s troops launched their February 2022 invasion of its smaller neighbour.
In sharing nuclear secrets with Iran, Putin may have crossed his own ‘red line’
Sunday 22 September 2024 04:00 , Alexander Butler
In sharing nuclear secrets with Iran, Putin may have crossed his own ‘red line’
Zelensky will visit a Pennsylvania ammunition factory to thank workers
Sunday 22 September 2024 03:47 , Arpan Rai
Volodymyr Zelensky will visit the Pennsylvania ammunition factory today that is producing one of the most critically needed munitions for his country’s fight to fend off Russian ground forces.
He is expected to go to the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant to kick off a busy week in the United States shoring up support for Ukraine in the war, according to two US officials and a third familiar with Mr Zelensky’s schedule who spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide details that were not yet public.
He also will address the UN General Assembly annual gathering in New York and travel to Washington for talks on Thursday with president Joe Biden and vice president Kamala Harris.
The Scranton plant is one of the few facilities in the country to manufacture 155 mm artillery shells. They are used in howitzer systems, which are towed large guns with long barrels that can fire at various angles.
Howitzers can strike targets up to 15 miles to 20 miles (24km to 32km) away and are highly valued by ground forces to take out enemy targets from a protected distance.
Ukraine has already received more than 3 million of the 155 mm shells from the US.
I’ve witnessed first-hand the horrific cost of Putin’s war – as casualties hit 1 million
Sunday 22 September 2024 03:00 , Alexander Butler
I’ve witnessed first-hand the horrific cost of Putin’s war – as casualties hit 1m
He led Ukraine’s drone industry – now he’s fighting to keep Moscow out of world chess
Sunday 22 September 2024 02:00 , Alexander Butler
He led Ukraine’s drone industry – now he’s fighting to keep Moscow out of world chess
Comment: Is this the next target on Russia’s hitlist?
Sunday 22 September 2024 01:00 , Alexander Butler
Is this the next target on Russia’s hitlist?
Kremlin prisoner-swap exclusive: How I survived 11 months in Putin’s gulag
Sunday 22 September 2024 00:01 , Alexander Butler
Vladimir Kara-Murza: How I survived 11 months of torture in Putin’s gulag
Ukraine says Russia planning strikes on nuclear facilities
Saturday 21 September 2024 23:00 , Alexander Butler
Ukraine’s foreign minister said on Saturday that Russia appeared to be planning strikes on Ukrainian nuclear facilities before the winter, urging the IAEA and Ukraine’s allies to establish permanent monitoring missions at the country’s nuclear plants.
“In particular, it concerns open distribution devices at (nuclear power plants and) transmission substations, critical for the safe operation of nuclear energy,” Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha wrote on X.
Editorial: We must give Ukraine the tools it needs to finish the job
Saturday 21 September 2024 22:00 , Alexander Butler
We must give Ukraine the tools it needs to finish the job
Navalny ally calls on West to invest in Russia’s next generation to beat Putin
Saturday 21 September 2024 21:00 , Alexander Butler
Navalny ally calls on West to invest in Russia’s next generation to beat Putin
In sharing nuclear secrets with Iran, Putin may have crossed his own ‘red line’
Saturday 21 September 2024 20:00 , Alexander Butler
In sharing nuclear secrets with Iran, Putin may have crossed his own ‘red line’
Iran withheld launchers for missiles sent to Russia, sources say
Saturday 21 September 2024 19:00 , Alexander Butler
Iran did not include mobile launchers with the close-range ballistic missiles that Washington last week accused Tehran of delivering to Russia for use against Ukraine, according to three sources with knowledge of the matter.
The sources – a European diplomat, a European intelligence official and a U.S. official – said it was not clear why Iran did not supply launchers with the Fath-360 missiles, raising questions about when and if the weapons will be operational.
The US official, who like the other sources spoke on condition of anonymity, said Iran had not delivered the launchers at the time of the US announcement about Iran’s delivery of the weapons. The European intelligence official said without elaborating that they did not expect Iran to provide launchers.
I’ve witnessed first-hand the horrific cost of Putin’s war – as casualties hit 1 million
Saturday 21 September 2024 18:00 , Alexander Butler
I’ve witnessed first-hand the horrific cost of Putin’s war – as casualties hit 1m
He led Ukraine’s drone industry – now he’s fighting to keep Moscow out of world chess
Saturday 21 September 2024 17:00 , Alexander Butler
He led Ukraine’s drone industry – now he’s fighting to keep Moscow out of world chess
Comment: Is this the next target on Russia’s hitlist?
Saturday 21 September 2024 16:00 , Alexander Butler
Is this the next target on Russia’s hitlist?
Kremlin prisoner-swap exclusive: How I survived 11 months in Putin’s gulag
Saturday 21 September 2024 15:00 , Alexander Butler
Vladimir Kara-Murza: How I survived 11 months of torture in Putin’s gulag
Ukraine says Russia planning strikes on nuclear facilities
Saturday 21 September 2024 14:10 , Alexander Butler
Ukraine’s foreign minister said on Saturday that Russia appeared to be planning strikes on Ukrainian nuclear facilities before the winter, urging the IAEA and Ukraine’s allies to establish permanent monitoring missions at the country’s nuclear plants.
“In particular, it concerns open distribution devices at (nuclear power plants and) transmission substations, critical for the safe operation of nuclear energy,” Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha wrote on X.
Mapped: Ukraine’s incursion into the Russian Kursk region explained
Saturday 21 September 2024 14:00 , Alexander Butler
Mapped: Ukraine’s incursion into the Russian Kursk region explained
The downfall of Putin is inevitable, says freed dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza
Saturday 21 September 2024 13:00 , Alexander Butler
The fall of Putin is inevitable, says freed dissident Vladimir Kara Murza
Zelensky hopes to meet Donald Trump next week
Saturday 21 September 2024 11:44 , Alexander Butler
President Volodymyr Zelensky said he hoped to meet Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump next week when he travels to the United States to present Ukraine’s “victory plan” in the war against Russia.
“We will most likely have a meeting, I think, on September 26-27,” Zelensky told media late on Friday, without providing further details.
Over 1000 people evacuated in Russia
Saturday 21 September 2024 10:12 , Alexander Butler
At least 1,200 people were evacuated from the Tikhoretsky District in Russia’s southwestern Krasnodar region, the local governor said on Saturday.
Russia’s defence ministry said it had downed 18 drones over the Krasnodar region overnight. The battlefield reports could not be independently verified.
Most of those evacuated were staying with friends and relatives, Veniamin Kondratyev, the governor of Krasnodar region, said on the Telegram messaging app.
Russia launches over 100 glide bombs
Saturday 21 September 2024 09:03 , Alexander Butler
Vladimir Putin’s troops have launched over 100 deadly glide bombs at Ukraine as part of their ongoing aerial assault of the country.
Russia fired 108 KABs – the Ukrainian acronym for guided aerial bomb – at Ukrainian positions on Friday, Kyiv said.
They are old-fashioned “iron” aerial bombs of the sort that were dropped by bombers during the Second World War.
Boy, 12, killed in overnight attack
Saturday 21 September 2024 09:01 , Alexander Butler
In Kryvyi Rih, central Ukraine, a 12-year-old boy was killed alongside two elderly women after a Russian overnight missile attack.
“Again, a terrifying enemy attack on Kryvyi Rih. In the middle of the night, when the city slept,” the city’s governor Serhiy Lysak said.
The two women killed in the attack were 75 and 79. Mr Lysak also said two buildings were destroyed and 20 more were damaged.
Is this the next target on Russia’s hitlist?
Saturday 21 September 2024 08:30 , Rachel Hagan
A proposed corridor through Armenia would effectively sever the country’s connection to Iran and slice through its sovereign territory, with the support of Moscow, writes former MP Lord Alton.
Is this the next target on Russia’s hitlist?
Lavrov vows Russia to defend its Arctic interests
Saturday 21 September 2024 07:30 , Rachel Hagan
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said that Moscow is prepared to defend its interests in the Arctic through diplomatic, military, and technical means.
His comments come in response to increasing US and Nato military exercises in the region, which Mr Lavrov sees as a potential threat. In comments quoted in Russian media, he emphasised that Russia is fully equipped to protect its interests amid rising tensions.
“We see how Nato is intensifying exercises in connection with possible crises in the Arctic,” Mr Lavrov was quoted as saying in a documentary series titled “Soviet Breakthrough”.
“Our country is fully ready to defend its interests in military, political and military-technical terms.”
His remarks follow a US Pentagon report highlighting intensified Russian activity in the Arctic, including the reopening of Soviet-era military sites and cooperation with China on shipping routes and minerals, which the US believes could affect polar stability.
Ukraine joins Nato drill to test anti-drone systems
Saturday 21 September 2024 06:47 , Arpan Rai
Nato concluded a major anti-drone exercise this week, with Ukraine taking part for the first time as the Western alliance seeks to learn from the rapid development and widespread use of unmanned systems in the war there.
The drills at a Dutch military base, involving more than 20 countries and some 50 companies, tested cutting-edge systems to detect and counter drones and assessed how they work together. The 11-day exercise ended with a demonstration of jamming and hacking drones.
On Wednesday, an attack which Ukraine claimed was carried out by large drones triggered a major blast at a major Russian arsenal.
The following day, Vladimir Putin said Moscow was ramping up drone production tenfold to nearly 1.4 million this year.
The proliferation of drones in the war “to destroy targets and survey the battlefield” has prompted Nato to increase its focus on the threat they could pose to the alliance.
“Nato takes this threat very, very seriously,” said Matt Roper, chief of the Joint Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Centre at the alliance’s technology agency.
“This is not a domain we can afford to sit back and be passive on,” he said at the exercise site, Lieutenant General Best Barracks in the east of The Netherlands.
Experts have warned Nato that it needs to catch up quickly on drone warfare. “Nato has too few drones for a high-intensity fight against a peer adversary,” a report from the Center for European Policy Analysis think tank declared last September.
“It would be severely challenged to effectively integrate those it has in a contested environment.”
EU chief travels to Kyiv with promise of fresh energy funds to get Ukraine through winter
Saturday 21 September 2024 06:30 , Rachel Hagan
European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen travelled to war-ravaged Ukraine on Friday with the promise of 160 million euros ($180 million) in fresh energy funds to get the nation through the winter.
Von der Leyen told reporters that 100 million euros ($112 million) of the funds would come the proceeds of the Russian assets held in the EU because of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. “It is only right that Russia pays for the destruction it caused,” she said.
The European Union estimates that about half of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure has been destroyed, making the job of heating homes, hospitals and schools increasingly difficult as temperatures dip ahead of the third war winter that the nation will face.
Von der Leyen said Russia knew full well that bombing energy stations was hitting Ukraine where it really hurts. Morale to keep on fighting can be significantly sapped if millions shiver in the brutal winter for months on end.
US national tortured to death in Ukraine by Russian soldiers, Moscow says
Saturday 21 September 2024 06:25 , Arpan Rai
Russell Bentley, a US national who went missing in Russian-controlled eastern Ukraine early this year, is believed to have been tortured to death by Russian soldiers who are now set to go on trial, Russia’s top investigative body said.
Bentley died in the Russian-controlled city of Donetsk in April, Margarita Simonyan, head of Russia’s state media outlet RT, wrote at the time, saying he had been “fighting there for our guys” and working with Russia’s Sputnik news service.
Russian media outlets have suggested that the soldiers may have mistaken Bentley – the subject of a 2022 interview with Rolling Stone magazine titled “The Bizarre Story of How a Hardcore Texas Leftist Became a Frontline Putin propagandist” – for a US spy.
The Investigative Committee said in a statement that it had completed its probe and accused three Russian servicemen of torturing Bentley to death in Donetsk on 8 April.
It said two of the soldiers had then put his body in a car and blown it up. A fourth soldier had been ordered the following day to move Bentley’s remains to another location in an attempt to conceal the crime.
The Committee’s statement said the accused soldiers, whom it named, were familiarising themselves with the allegations before the indictment was sent for approval.
Biden readies $375m arms aid package for Ukraine
Saturday 21 September 2024 06:05 , Arpan Rai
The United States is preparing a $375m military aid package for Ukraine, breaking a months-long trend towards smaller packages for Kyiv for its military operations against Russia, two US officials said.
The latest package comes at a crucial time in the war, as Russia pummels Ukraine‘s energy grid ahead of the critical winter months.
The aid package, expected to be announced next week, includes patrol boats, additional ammunition for high-mobility artillery rocket systems (HIMARS), 155 and 105 millimeter artillery ammunition, spare parts and other weapons, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The contents and size of the package could change in the coming days ahead of the president’s expected signature.
Australia looking to send decommissioned Abrams tanks to Ukraine
Saturday 21 September 2024 05:42 , Arpan Rai
Australia is looking to send its decommissioned Abrams battle tanks to aid Ukraine in the war against Russia.
Officials from the Anthony Albanese administration are working on a plan with the US to send the retired battle tanks, reported The Sydney Morning Herald.
Australia’s former army chief Peter Leahy, who served from 2003 to 2008 in the top role, said he was baffled why the decision to send them hadn’t been made already.
“I’m bemused why the tanks aren’t on offer to Ukraine,” he said. “Although we are retiring them, they are a very competent tank, they should be well-maintained, there are spare parts available and the Ukrainians are very keen to get them,” the former army chief said.
Kremlin prisoner-swap exclusive: How I survived 11 months in Putin’s gulag
Saturday 21 September 2024 05:30 , Rachel Hagan
Vladimir Kara-Murza, one of the faces of Russian opposition to Putin alongside Evan Gershkovich, sits down with The Independent for the first time since being freed in a historic prisoner swap. Tom Watling reports.
Vladimir Kara-Murza: How I survived 11 months of torture in Putin’s gulag
Suspected Trump assassination plotter travelled to Ukraine in 2022
Saturday 21 September 2024 05:25 , Arpan Rai
The erratic life of a struggling roofing contractor suspected of trying to shoot Donald Trump swerved from bounced checks to a weapon felony conviction and a quixotic plan to help Ukraine fight Russia’s invasion, before culminating in what appears to be a foiled assassination plot.
Ryan Routh, 58, was charged with two gun-related crimes in a federal court in Florida on Monday, a day after he was spotted with a rifle hiding in shrubbery on the property line of Trump’s golf course. More charges are expected.
Reuters found profiles on X, Facebook and LinkedIn for a Ryan Routh, and public access to the Facebook and X profiles was removed hours after the shooting.
The three accounts bearing Routh’s name showed he supported Ukraine in its war against Russia.
On 21 April, Routh directed an X message to Elon Musk, writing: “I would like to buy a rocket from you. I wish to load it with a warhead for Putins Black sea mansion bunker to end him. Can you give me a price please.”
The New York Times reported it had interviewed Routh in 2023 for an article about Americans who were volunteering to help the Ukraine war effort. Routh told the Times he travelled to Ukraine, spent several months there in 2022 and was trying to recruit Afghan soldiers who fled the Taliban to fight in Ukraine.
One current and another former US volunteer serving with the foreign legion of Ukraine’s army said they recalled Routh and believed that he spent time in the western Ukrainian city of Ivano-Frankivsk. Both of them said he exhibited odd behaviour.
