Russia has launched an air attack on Ukraine’s capital Kyiv and its surrounding region, forcing the engagement of air defence systems to repel the strikes.
Witnesses said they heard several blasts in and around Kyiv that sounded like air defence systems hitting air weapons. So far there have been no reports of casualties.
The airstrikes come hours after at least three people were killed and a further 19 injured after Russia fired multiple glide bombs at civilian-populated areas of Ukraine’s second largest city, Kharkiv.
A residential building was hit four times at around 3.15pm local time, according to local officials.
The city, home to around 1.3 million civilians, has been relentlessly hit by aerial strikes from Russian forces across the border, which is only 20 miles away.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky urged Kyiv’s western allies to help them stop these attacks.
“This Russian terror with guided aerial bombs must and can be stopped,” he wrote on Telegram. “Bold decisions from our partners are needed so that we can destroy Russian terrorists and Russian combat aircraft where they are.”
Farage accused of ‘playing into Putin’s hands’
Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer have led criticism of Nigel Farage after the Reform UK leader claimed that the West “provoked” Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
It did not stop Mr Farage from doubling down on his comments, originally made in a BBC Panorama interview which aired on Friday night, in a column piece on Saturday afternoon for the Daily Telegraph, claiming that he should “not be blamed for telling the truth about Putin’s war”.
Asked about the remarks during an election campaign visit in London on Saturday, prime minister Mr Sunak suggested Mr Farage was “emboldening Putin”.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar23 June 2024 07:30
Russian lawmaker warns Moscow may change timing for use of nuclear weapons
Moscow may change the timing for use of its nuclear weapons if threats against Russia increase, the RIA state news agency cited Andrei Kartapolov, the head of the Russian lower house’s defence committee, as saying on Sunday.
The former general’s comments follow recent warnings by President Vladimir Putin that Moscow may change its nuclear doctrine, which lays out the conditions in which such weapons could be used.
“If we see that the challenges and threats increase, it means that we can correct something in (the doctrine) regarding the timing of the use of nuclear weapons and the decision to make this use,” the agency quoted Kartapolov as saying.
“But of course, it’s too early to talk about specifics now.”
Matt Mathers23 June 2024 07:16
Here are some of the latest photos from Ukraine
Below are some of the latest photos coming from Chasiv Yar, a small city in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk.
The city has become a flashpoint on the frontline in recent months as Russian forces look to gain the strategic area, located on high ground.
Tom Watling23 June 2024 07:00
Russia launched 2,400 guided bombs on Ukraine in June, says Zelensky
Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky has called for more help to deal with the growing threat of Russian guided bombs after an attack on Kharkiv killed three civilians.
In a nightly video address, the president said Russian forces had used more than 2,400 guided bombs on Ukrainian targets in June alone, with about 700 aimed at Kharkiv.
He said after US Congress gave delayed approval of a big aid package in April, Ukraine’s replenished arms supplies had reduced the devastation and frequency of missile attacks and the same had to be done now to fend off these bombs.
“The significant reduction in Russian missile terror against Kharkiv and the region proves it is entirely possible to secure our cities and communities from Russian bombs,” he said.
Ukraine, he said, needed promised military aid packages “without delay so that the agreements we reached with (US) president Biden can be realised.”
Ukraine and the US signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement this month aimed at bolstering Ukraine’s defense against Russia and getting Ukraine closer to Nato membership.
Russia has relied increasingly on relatively inexpensive guided bombs, dropped from a distance and involving fewer risks for its forces.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar23 June 2024 06:30
Ukraine ‘launches tens of drones on Russian territory’
Ukraine has launched tens of drones overnight targeting several Russian regions but with no reported damage, Russian officials said.
At least 23 drones were destroyed over Russia’s western region of Bryansk, which borders Ukraine, the governor of the region, Alexander Bogomaz, said on Telegram.
Russia’s air defence systems also destroyed drones over the Smolensk region, Vasily Anokhin, governor of the region in Russia’s west, said on Telegram. It was not immediately clear how many drones were downed.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar23 June 2024 05:30
Sunak accuses Farage of ‘playing into Putin’s hands’ with Ukraine comments
Sunak accuses Farage of ‘playing into Putin’s hands’ with Ukraine comments
Rishi Sunak has accused Nigel Farage of “playing into [Vladimir] Putin’s hands” with his claim that the West provoked Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Reform UK leader claimed “we provoked this war” in a BBC Panorama interview, while drawing a link between Nato and European Union expansion in recent decades and the conflict in eastern Europe. Mr Farage’s claim was “completely wrong,” the prime minister told reporters on Saturday, 22 June. “This is a man [Mr Putin] who deployed nerve agent on the streets of Britain, who is doing deals with countries like North Korea, and this kind of appeasement is dangerous for Britain’s security, the security of our allies that rely on us, and only emboldens Putin further,” Mr Sunak added.
Tom Watling23 June 2024 05:00
Russia launches air attack on Kyiv
Russia launched an air attack on Kyiv and its surrounding region, forcing the engagement of air defence systems to repel the strikes, the mayor of Ukraine’s capital and the broader Kyiv region’s administration said on Telegram.
Witnesses told Reuters they heard several blasts in and around Kyiv that sounded like air defence systems hitting air weapons.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar23 June 2024 04:23
