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☆ Explosions heard in Kyiv, other Ukrainian cities - authorities
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 4 (Reuters) - Explosions were heard in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and other cities in the early hours of Thursday morning, officials and media outlets said, with some local authorities reporting that anti-aircraft defences were at work. The latest blasts were reported less than 24 hours after Kyiv said 21 people died in a Russian strike on the city of Kherson. "Air defences are working in the Kyiv region," the regional military administration said on Telegram. Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne reported explosions in the southern city of Zaporizhzhia. Yuri Malashko, the head of the Zaporizhzhia regional military administration, said on Telegram that anti-aircraft defences were at work.

☆ Russia's war on Ukraine latest: Kremlin says US behind drone attack
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

FIGHTING* Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine would launch a counteroffensive soon against occupying Russian forces. * Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of Russia's Wagner Group mercenary force, said the counteroffensive had already begun and his forces were observing heightened activity along the front. DIPLOMACY/POLITICS* Putin must be brought to justice for his war in Ukraine, Zelenskiy said on Thursday during a visit to The Hague, where the International Criminal Court (ICC) is based. * U.S. military aid for Ukraine includes for the first time the Hydra-70 short-range air-launched rocket, taken from U.S. excess stocks. * Zelenskiy said Russia did not appear to be interested in extending the agreement beyond May 18.

☆ Moscow says US behind Kremlin drone attack, Russian forces target Kyiv
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Pavel Polityuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov, without providing evidence, said Ukraine had acted on U.S. orders with the alleged drone attack on the Kremlin citadel in the early hours of Wednesday. "Attempts to disown this (attack on the Kremlin), both in Kyiv and in Washington, are, of course, absolutely ridiculous. Separately, Russia's foreign ministry said the alleged drone attack "must not go unanswered" and that it showed Kyiv had no desire to end the 15-month old war at the negotiating table. Russian emergency services quickly extinguished a fire at the Ilsky oil refinery, one of the largest in southern Russia, after a drone attack set product storage facilities ablaze, TASS news agency reported. Reporting by Kyiv, Moscow and Amsterdam buros Writing by Gareth Jones Editing by Nick MacfieOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ukraine's Zelenskiy visits war crimes court in The Hague seeking justice
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Tosterling Bart H. Meijer | Bart H. Meijer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

AMSTERDAM, May 4 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Thursday visited the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, which in March issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for suspected deportation of children from Ukraine. Zelenskiy, dressed in his trademark khaki, was welcomed at the court by its president, judge Piotr Hofmanski. In his first official trip to the country, Zelenskiy was due to deliver a speech later in the morning, also in The Hague, titled "No Peace Without Justice for Ukraine". The Ukrainian leader has visited several foreign capitals including London, Paris and Washington since Russia's 2022 invasion. The ICC can prosecute genocide in Ukraine but has no jurisdiction over alleged crimes of aggression by Russia there.

☆ Ukrainian air defences destroy 18 out of 24 Russian drones overnight
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 4 (Reuters) - Ukrainian air defences said they downed 18 out of 24 kamikaze drones that Russia launched in a pre-dawn attack on Thursday. In a statement, Kyiv city administration said that all missiles and drones targeting the Ukrainian capital for the third time in four days, have been destroyed. "The Russians have attacked Kyiv using Shahed loitering munitions and missiles, likely the ballistic type," the administration said. Out of 15 Shahed kamikaze drones fired at the Black Sea coastal city of Odesa, air defences destroyed 12, while three struck a university compound. The latest blasts were reported less than 24 hours after Kyiv said 21 people died in a Russian strike on the city of Kherson.

☆ Ukraine tried to assassinate Putin by drone, Kremlin says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Shortly after the Kremlin announcement, Ukraine reported alerts for air strikes over the capital Kyiv and other cities. "The Russian side reserves the right to take retaliatory measures where and when it sees fit," the Kremlin added. "When the enemy can achieve nothing on the battlefield, it strikes at peaceful cities," Ukrainian military spokesperson Serhii Cherevatyi said. Elsewhere, oil depots were ablaze in southern Russia and Ukraine alike as both sides escalated a drone war ahead of Kyiv's promised spring counteroffensive against Russian forces. Blinken said later the U.S. government had authorised another $300 million worth of arms and equipment for Ukraine.

☆ Opinion: The chilling logic behind Russia’s deportation of children
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Opinion Kristina Hook | Oleksandra Gaidai | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Writing in 1914, historian Marian Dubiecki recounted Moscow’s deportation of Polish children following the 18th century Kościuszko Uprising. More recently, testimonies of rescued Ukrainian children recount extensive ideological coercion, often violent, while in Russian custody. Kristina Hook and Oleksandra GaidaiRussian perpetrators now demonstrate radicalization dynamics well-known to genocide scholars, and their dehumanizing ire has turned toward Ukrainian children. One state TV pundit openly speculated about drowning or burning Ukrainian children. Children are falsely told that their families have abandoned them and that they are “children of Russia” forever.

[1/5] A firefighter works at the site of a train station hit by a Russian military strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kherson, Ukraine May 3, 2023. Pools of blood and piles of debris lay on the ground outside the Kherson hypermarket, whose entrance had been heavily damaged and cordoned off, Reuters correspondents on the scene said. Russia did not comment on the attacks in Kherson, one of four Ukrainian regions it said it annexed last September. Many windows were smashed at the railway station, and at least two survivors were seen being carried out on stretchers. Regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin on Wednesday announced a curfew in Kherson city to last from Friday evening until Monday morning for "law enforcement" reasons.

☆ Analysis: Cross-border attacks as Russia and Ukraine seek to weaken each other ahead of expected offensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Nick Paton Walsh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Ukraine is apparently striking at fuel depots in Russian-occupied areas and inside Russia itself – seemingly precise attacks but ones to which Kyiv is making no overt claim. Russia has been lashing out at what often seem to be civilian targets in Ukraine, either in rage or through ineptitude. Ukraine was quick to capitalize on that statement and sent senior officials to the area to claim Russia had already begun pulling back. And now, in Kherson, Ukrainian officials have ordered a 58-hour curfew from 8 p.m. on May 5, barring locals from leaving their houses. This comes amid a deluge of comments from Ukrainian officials that the weather - for the past fortnight alternating between rain and bold sunshine - has held them back.

☆ Russia's war on Ukraine latest: Zelenskiy visits war crimes court in The Hague
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

FIGHTING* Zelenskiy said Ukraine would launch a counteroffensive soon against occupying Russian forces. * Russian shelling killed 23 people in and near the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson on Wednesday, hitting a hypermarket, a railway station and residential buildings, the regional governor said. DIPLOMACY/POLITICS* Zelenskiy will have a meeting at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague on Thursday, the court said without giving further detail. * U.S. military aid for Ukraine includes for the first time the Hydra-70 short-range air-launched rocket, taken from U.S. excess stocks. * Zelenskiy said Russia did not appear to be interested in extending the agreement beyond May 18.

☆ Russia Tightens Restrictions in Occupied Regions of Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Marc Santora | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

Residents waiting for buses in Russian-controlled Mariupol, Ukraine, in December. Russian counterintelligence operatives are restricting travel in occupied areas of Ukraine, according to Ukrainian officials. KYIV, Ukraine — As Ukrainian forces step up their assaults behind enemy lines ahead of an expected counteroffensive, Russia is imposing stricter measures on civilians in occupied areas of Ukraine, Ukrainian officials say. The Ukrainian General Staff, which is responsible for the country’s overall military strategy, said “the violent abduction of pro-Ukrainian civilians” in occupied areas was continuing and that there were signs more civilians could be detained. In a reflection of the dangers facing Russian occupiers themselves, both Ukrainian and Russian officials reported an assassination attempt on the Kremlin-appointed deputy head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on Tuesday.

☆ Russia appears in disarray as Ukraine prepares counteroffensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Nick Paton Walsh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine CNN —Ukraine’s much-anticipated counteroffensive appears imminent – and the way each side is preparing speaks volumes about their readiness. Kyiv’s front lines are abuzz with vehicle movement and artillery strikes, with regular explosions hitting vital Russian targets in occupied areas. Its defense minister has said preparations are “coming to an end” and President Volodymyr Zelensky has assured a counteroffensive “will happen,” while demurring on any exact start date. Muhammed Enes Yildirim/Anadolu Agency/Getty ImagesThe “Butcher of Mariupol,” as Mizintsev is known, surely had enough failings over Russia’s disastrous war to merit his firing. By removing key ministers in the moments before its army faces Ukraine’s counter-assault, Moscow sends a message of disarray.

☆ Ukraine could launch its offensive against Russia any moment now. Here's what's waiting
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Tim Lister | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The defenses continue for hundreds of miles across the meandering southern front – where Ukrainian forces are expected to concentrate their counter-offensive in the coming weeks. This area will be critical should Ukrainian forces try to advance towards the city of Melitopol and split Russian forces in the south. It’s unclear where the equipment went but likely that it was sent north to reinforce Russian defensive lines. Russian-appointed officials in Zaporizhzhia claim there is already a large build-up of Ukrainian forces in the area. Ukrainian officials do not disclose the movement of units.

☆ Ukrainian drones strike Crimea oil depot, Russian official says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

A still image from a video shows smoke rising following an alleged drone attack on oil depot in Sevastopol, Crimea, April 29, 2023. A massive fire erupted at an oil depot in Crimea after it was hit by two of Ukraine's drones, a Russia-appointed official there reported Saturday, the latest in a series of attacks on the annexed peninsula as Russia braces for an expected Ukrainian counteroffensive. Mikhail Razvozhayev, the Moscow-installed governor of Sevastopol, a port city in Crimea, posted videos and photos of the blaze on his Telegram channel. Razvozhayev said the oil depot was attacked by "two enemy drones," and four oil tanks burned down. Razvozhayev said the oil depot fire did not cause any casualties and would not hinder fuel supplies in Sevastopol.

☆ Armed with tanks and heavy armor from NATO, Ukraine says it's about to hit Russian forces with an 'iron fist'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ukraine is almost ready to launch a long-awaited spring counteroffensive, its defense minister said. "We are to a high percentage ready," Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said Friday. Reznikov said Western-supplied weapons would serve as an "iron fist" against Russian forces. Stoltenberg said the aid provided to Ukraine included over 1,550 armored vehicles, 230 tanks, and other military hardware, as well as "vast amounts of ammunition." Meanwhile, the Ukrainian people continue to face the deadly consequences of the Russian onslaught, which targets not just the Ukrainian armed forces but also civilians.

☆ Russia sacks deputy defence minister sanctioned by West over Mariupol, reports say
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 28 (Reuters) - Russian Colonel General Mikhail Mizintsev, who was sanctioned by the West and dubbed the "Butcher of Mariupol" for his role in the Ukraine war, has been removed as deputy defence minister, according to a military blogger and a leading news website. Mizintsev orchestrated the siege of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol in the early months of the war last year. In September, he was appointed deputy defence minister in charge of logistics and supplies. His departure was reported by a Russian military blogger, Alexander Sladkov, and by the RBC news site. Russia has seized more than a sixth of Ukraine's territory, but has sustained heavy losses in the course of the 14-month war.

☆ Russia paves way for deportations from annexed Ukrainian regions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The decree, which was reported by Russian news agencies on Friday, covers four Ukrainian regions that Russia has unilaterally claimed as its own and partially controls: Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. Kyiv says it will retake all four areas and has accused Moscow of trying to browbeat its citizens into accepting Russian citizenship. Ukrainian Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Malyar this week accused Russia of trying to change what she called "the ethnic make-up" of occupied territory by bringing in settlers from remote parts of Russia while deporting people suspected of being pro-Ukrainian. The decree sets out ways that Ukrainian citizens or those holding passports issued by Russia-backed breakaway republics, and who live in the four regions, can start the process of becoming Russian citizens or legalise their status with the Russian authorities. The decree also allows the deportation of people from the four regions who are deemed a threat to national security or take part in unauthorised meetings.

[1/5] A local resident leaves after a doctor's visit at a clinic in the liberated village of Vyshneva, near Kharkiv, in eastern Ukraine, April 21, 2023. He can be certain of one thing, however: many patients he meets will be suffering from high blood pressure after living for months under Russian occupation near the frontlines. "Patients who we chat to say there was a considerable number of deaths because of the lack of medical help." The World Health Organization estimates that the overall damage to the system could cost more than $15 billion to repair. But as more people return to liberated areas, a skeleton staff buttressed by volunteers will struggle to meet needs.

☆ Russia has emptied out a Crimea base of weaponry, with officials worried Ukraine could target the region in a possible counteroffensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Satellite photos obtained by CNN show that Russia has emptied out a military base in Crimea. Ukraine is planning a counteroffensive, and the head of the region indicated it could be a target. Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, and Ukraine says one of its goals is to get it back. Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, claiming it as part of Russia in a move that has not been recognized internationally. The region also served as a launchpad for Russia when it began its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

☆ Russia digs in as Ukraine prepares to attack
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Tom Balmforth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

And in the case of Polohy, Russia has constructed two distinct defensive lines, one to the north and one to the south. Musiyenko estimated that Ukraine would have a force of between 100,000-110,000 for an attack, including eight assault brigades with a total of 40,000 troops. Russia has not said how many troops it has in Ukraine, or within its borders ready to deploy. A leaked U.S. intelligence document dated Feb. 28 seen by Reuters said the West had committed 200 tanks to Ukraine. Army chief Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said in December he needed 300 to defeat Russia, along with other vehicles and artillery.

☆ Russia's Prigozhin: Ukrainian counter-offensive is 'inevitable'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 26 (Reuters) - The head of Russia's private Wagner militia, Yevgeny Prigozhin, said Ukraine was preparing for an "inevitable" counter-offensive and was sending well-prepared units to the devastated eastern city of Bakhmut, for many months the focal point of fighting. But he said his forces would do whatever it takes to halt any Ukrainian attempt to retake the city. "We will advance at any cost, just to grind down the Ukrainian army and disrupt their offensive," Prigozhin said. Russia has said capturing Bakhmut will allow it to mount further offensives in eastern Ukraine. Despite downplaying its strategic significance for Moscow, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelesnkiy has repeatedly refused to withdraw his forces.

☆ Ukraine stages raids across Dnipro River as counteroffensive looms
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Olena Harmash | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KYIV, April 25 (Reuters) - Ukrainian forces based on the western side of the River Dnipro are frequently carrying out raids on the eastern bank near the city of Kherson to try to dislodge Russian troops, a regional official said on Tuesday. Yuriy Sobolevskiy, deputy head of the Kherson regional administration, said the raids were intended to reduce the combat capability of Russian troops who have been shelling Kherson city since being forced to retreat. "Our military visit the left (eastern) bank very often, conducting raids. Russia seized the Kherson region soon after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine 14 months ago, and has continued since then to hold all of the region's territory east the Dnipro. Retaking all the Kherson region would be an important step towards achieving this goal.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov holds a press conference during the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) at U.N. headquarters on September 24, 2022 in New York City. Stephanie Keith | Getty ImagesUNITED NATIONS — When Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov takes the helm of the United Nations Security Council on Monday it will be against a backdrop of mounting allegations of Russian war crimes reported across Ukraine. Since then, the war has claimed the lives of more than 8,500 civilians, led to nearly 14,000 injuries and displaced more than 8 million people, according to United Nations' own estimates. Lvova-Belova told the Security Council on April 5 that the transfer of Ukrainian children to Russia was part of a humanitarian campaign. In some cases, the commission found that Ukrainian forces committed war crimes against Russian troops, though those incidents were less frequent.

☆ UK intel says Russia is giving Ukrainians in occupied towns a choice: Get Russian passports or get 'deported' and have their property seized
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Russian authorities are forcing Ukrainian citizens in occupied areas to get Russian passports. If residents refuse, they will be "deported" and have their property seized, UK intel said. The UK Ministry of Defense said Putin's forces are trying to force Russian culture on occupied Ukrainian territories. According to an update from the UK Ministry of Defense, Russia is forcing Ukrainian citizens to accept Russian Federation passports. The ministry added that making Ukrainians register with Russian passports is "a tool in the 'Russification' of the occupied areas," meaning the forced assimilation of Ukrainians into Russian culture.

☆ Ukrainian Forces Recapture Land Across Key River in South, Think Tank Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Ian Lovett | Ann M. Simmons | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

KYIV, Ukraine—Ukrainian forces have established a presence on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River in the southern Kherson region, according to the Institute for the Study of War, in what would be a significant step in Ukraine’s effort to reclaim occupied territory. The Washington-based think tank cited geolocated footage from Russian military bloggers, who in recent days have been openly discussing whether their side had lost control of the eastern bank of the Dnipro. Russian troops withdrew to the east side of the river in November, after months of Ukrainian strikes had stretched their supply lines to the regional capital of Kherson, on the river’s western bank.

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