– Missile hits Odesa airport –
A Russian missile destroys the runway at Odesa airport in southern Ukraine but there are no victims, the regional governor Maksym Marchenko says on his Telegram account.
– Ukrainians freed in prisoner swap –
Fourteen Ukrainians including a pregnant soldier have been freed in the latest prisoner exchange with Russian forces, Ukraine says, without revealing the number of Russians returned to Moscow.
The exchange of seven military personnel and seven civilians included a soldier who is five months pregnant, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk announces on Telegram.
– More bodies found near Bucha –
The bodies of three men shot in the head and with their hands tied have been found in a pit near Bucha, a town close to Kyiv, police say. There were also traces of torture, says a police statement. Bucha has become synonymous with allegations of Russian war crimes since dozens of bodies were first discovered there in early April.
– France to ‘intensify’ aid –
French President Emmanuel Macron says France will “intensify” its supply of military and humanitarian support following a conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky.
– Kharkiv shelled, again –
Ukraine’s second city Kharkiv is hit by multiple Russian shellings, though President Zelensky says Ukrainian forces are making “tactical successes” in the region.
One person was killed and five were injured “as a result of enemy artillery and mortar strikes”, Kharkiv’s regional military administration says on Telegram.
– Moscow admits Kyiv strike –
Russia confirms it carried out an air strike on Kyiv as UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres visited Thursday.
US-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty says its journalist and producer Vira Hyrych died when a Russian missile hit the building where she lived.
– Germany to ‘reconsider’ Schroeder’s perks –
The German government will consider withdrawing perks given to ex-chancellor Gerhard Schroeder because of his close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Germany’s finance minister says.
Schroeder, a lobbyist for Russian gas, sparked fresh outrage after telling the New York Times last weekend that he would only give up his links if Russia stopped delivering gas to Germany, which he did not believe would happen.
– Putin’s G20 invite –
Indonesia has invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to November’s G20 summit in Indonesia despite objections from the United States.
It cannot be “business as usual” for Russia at international gatherings, US State Department deputy spokeswoman Jalina Porter argues.
– Russian advance disputed –
The Russian campaign to seize control of the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine is moving slowly and behind schedule, a Pentagon official says.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says the “special military operation… is proceeding strictly according to plan”, China’s official Xinhua news agency reports.
– 13 million uprooted –
More than 5.4 million Ukrainians have fled their country since Russia invaded two months ago, with tens of thousands joining their ranks every day, the United Nations says.
Beyond the refugees, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimates more than 7.7 million people have been displaced within Ukraine, meaning that more than 13 million people overall have been uprooted by the conflict.
