Ex-British soldier killed as Kyiv asks Belarus to pull back from border: live

Ukraine has reportedly captured at least 247 Russian soldiers since launching an incursion into Russia’s Kursk Oblast on 6 August, according to a Washington Post analysis of visual evidence, including over 130 photos and videos.

Some of the captured troops identified themselves as conscripts, raising political issues for Russian President Vladimir Putin, as these men are often young, poorly trained, and have not been promised combat roles, the outlet reported.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a video of Russian soldiers surrendering en masse like that,” Dara Massicot, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace was quoted as saying.

“Having conscripts in combat undermines the social contract between Russian families and the government that has held under Putin’s leadership since 1999,” Massicot added.

The footage spans locations over 22 kilometres inside Russia and shows groups of captured soldiers, with some videos depicting at least 40 soldiers captured near the Sudzha border crossing.

Both the Ukrainian and Russian governments have not revealed the number of Russian soldiers captured during the Kursk offensive.

A Ukrainian drone attack on Russia’s Saratov region on Monday caused damage to homes and led to flight restrictions, according to Russian officials and news agencies.

The regional governor, Roman Basurgin, reported on Telegram that falling debris from drones, intercepted by Russia’s air defence systems, damaged a residential complex in the city of Saratov, and a woman was also injured in the incident.

Russia’s defence ministry stated that its air defence systems shot down nine drones over the Saratov region, which is located about 900 kilometres (560 miles) from Ukraine’s border, according to Reuters.

According to Russia’s RIA news agency, flights were limited at the Saratov regional airport, as reported by the airport’s press service.

Ukraine’s military reported that Russia launched a drone attack on Kyiv early Monday, but there were no injuries or damage, according to preliminary information.

“Up to 10 drones were destroyed on their approach to the city,” Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv’s military administration said, on Telegram.

He noted that a full assessment of the attack’s scale would be available later.

Air raid alerts were active across most of central and eastern Ukraine during the incident.

Falling debris from drones that Ukraine launched at Russia’s Saratov region damaged several houses in the cities of Saratov and Engels, according to the region’s governor on Monday.

Roman Busargin said on Telegram that all emergency services were dispatched to the affected areas.

Engels, one of the cities hit, is home to a strategic Russian military bomber base.

The US State Department confirmed that an American citizen was among those injured in the Russian strike on a hotel in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, which also killed British safety adviser Ryan Evans and injured two Reuters journalists.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky mentioned the presence of American citizens at the hotel, stating: “My condolences go out to the family and friends. This is a daily Russian terror that continues, because Russia has the ability to continue.”

The identities of the injured American and other affected individuals have not been disclosed.

Ukraine has urged Belarus to withdraw its military forces and equipment from the shared border, cautioning Belarus against making “tragic mistakes” while under Russian influence.

The Ukrainian foreign ministry highlighted the presence of Belarusian special forces and former Wagner mercenaries, along with tanks, artillery, and air defence systems near the border.

The statement from the ministry said Ukraine “has never taken and is not going to take any unfriendly actions against the Belarusian people”. Ukraine emphasised that it has no hostile intentions towards Belarus.

Meanwhile, Belarus said on Monday that it sent aircraft, air defence forces and armour to its border with Ukraine. Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko claimed that Ukraine has stationed over 120,000 troops along the border.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has condoled the death of an ex-British soldier who was killed in a suspected Russian missile strike on a hotel in Ukraine.

Ryan Evans, a safety adviser for the Reuters news agency, was in the Hotel Sapphire in the eastern city of Kramatorsk when it was hit on Saturday night.

In a statement, the agency said it was “devastated” to learn of his death and that two of its journalists were also injured, one seriously.

Mr Evans was part of a six-person team staying at the hotel while covering the war in Ukraine. Mr Zelensky said the hotel was hit by a Russian Iskander missile in a “deliberate” attack.

In his evening address on Sunday, he said: “A regular city hotel was destroyed by a Russian Iskander missile. Deliberately. Calculated. Seven people were injured, and one person lost their life. My deepest condolences to the families and loved ones.”