Ukraine-Russia war latest: 'Putin did not order Navalny death,' - US report; Russian oil refinery suspends operations after 'Ukrainian drone attack' (2024)

Moscow has sent more troops to the village of Ocheretyne in eastern Ukraine to reinforce their offensive there, the Ukrainian military has said.

Russian troops have been slowly advancing through at least half a dozen villages on the eastern front after capturing the town of Avdiivka in February.

While fierce fighting rages in Ocheretyne today, a spokesman for Ukraine's eastern command said his forces had the situation "under control" and that they still controlled two-thirds of the village.

Nazar Voloshyn said his troops shelled the part of the village seized by Russian forces, adding "the enemy is blocked and measures are being taken to kick them out".

He said he expected military aid from the US to help turn around the situation in the area.

Russian forces are also trying to capture the strategic town of Chasiv Yar at all costs, Mr Voloshyn said.

They have not yet managed to enter the town, which lies on high ground.

A 12th person has been arrested in connection with a shooting massacre in a packed Moscow concert hall last month, according to a Moscow court ruling.

Dzhumakhon Kurbonov is suspected of providing others involved in the attack with money and "telecommunications means".

The court ruled today that he should remain in custody until at least 22 May.

The man is believed to be fromTajikistan, according to Russian news reports.

At the end of last month 11 people, including four gunmen, had been arrested in connection to the incident.

At least 133 people died in the attack on the 6,000-capacity Crocus City Hall, in the western Moscow suburb of Krasnogorsk - making it the second-deadliest single terror attack in Russia's history.

In April 2023 116 Russian military personnel were convicted of murder - 900% higher than the previous year.

The same time this year, Russian media outlet Vertska reported that 190 former convicts were prosecuted again in criminal cases - 20 of whom were for murder or attempted murder.

One of those included an ex-Wagner prisoner who was sentenced to 22 years after murdering an elderly woman after his release.

The UK's Ministry of Defence puts this high number of murders by serving and veteran Russian soldiers down to enduring war-related chronic poor mental health issues.

It says post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and battlefield desensitisation to violence are also likely contributors.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has issued a new appeal for air defence systems after the latest strike on Ukraine's energy sector.

Mr Zelenskyy said Ukraine needed sufficient quantities of air defence and other weapons to protect its cities and prevail on the frontline.

"Terror should always lose, and anyone who helps us stand against Russian terror is a true defender of life," he said.

Earlier, we reported thatUkraine's air force said that it had intercepted 21 out of 34 drones launched across the country.

Energy facilities in Dnipropetrovsk in the south of the country and Ivano-Frankivsk and Lviv in the west had been attacked.

Private energy operator DTEK reported "casualties" after four of its thermal power plants were damaged.

Maxim Timchenko, DTEK chief executive, said the strikes are a cause for stronger defence.

"Last night's attacks underline the continued urgent need for Ukraine's allies to provide stronger air defence systems," he said.

The newest appeal comes in spite of a military aid package from the US which will provide munitions and equipment for its air defence launchers.

One person has died and 14 have been injured after attacks on several regions in Ukraine, local authorities have said.

The areas ofKherson, Donetsk, Kharkiv, and Dnipropetrovsk were all targeted overnight.

Kherson

In the Kherson region, one person died and eight others were injured, according togovernor Oleksandr Prokudin.

Kharkiv

While in Kharkiv, Russian forces hit a psychiatric hospital, injuring a 53-year-old patient.

Governor Oleh Syniehubov said 60 patients and five employees were in the hospital at the time.

Donetsk

Russian troops launched a total of 16 attacks against settlements in the Donetsk region, destroying or damaging 12 houses and five other unnamed buildings,Vadym Filashkin, the regional governor, said.

Three people were injured.

Dnipropetrovsk

An 82-year-old woman was injured during several strikes in the Dnipropetrovsk area.

Governor Serhii Lysak said seven blocks of flats, a market and a beauty salon were among the buildings damaged.

Following on from our last post, the Kremlin has said China and Russia will continue to develop ties after efforts by the US to curb relations between the two nations.

It follows US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, saying he had reiterated to China's top diplomat Wang Yi the serious concerns the US has about the country providing dual-use goods that are "powering Russia's brutal war of aggression against Ukraine".

Those weapons are being used to "demolish a power grid and other civilian infrastructure and to kill innocent children, women and men", Mr Blinken said.

When asked about Mr Blinken's comments, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said China is an "absolutely sovereign state".

He added: "At the same time, it [China] is our close partner. Wewill further develop our co-operation."

China maintains that it has not provided weaponry to any partyand is "not a producer of or party involved in the Ukrainecrisis".

The Kremlin has said there are currently no grounds for peace talks with Ukraine.

Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesperson, said the two nations would not discuss an end to the conflict after Kyiv put in place a formal refusal to negotiate.

The comments refer to a 2022 decree signed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy which declared the prospect of any talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin "impossible".

The decree states that the possibility for a discussion is still open to what Mr Zelenskyy called "another president ofRussia".

Russia launched a barrage of missiles against Ukraine overnight, appearing to target the country's energy infrastructure.

Ukraine's air force said that it had intercepted 21 out of 34 drones launched across the country.

Energy minister Herman Halushchenko said energy facilities in Dnipropetrovsk in the south of the country and Ivano-Frankivsk and Lviv in the west had been attacked.

An engineer was reportedly injured, Mr Halushchenko said.

Private energy operator DTEK said four of its thermal power plants were damaged and that there were "casualties" but did not provide any further detail.

It comes after the security service of Ukraine confirmed that it had launched drones at the Slavyansk and Ilsky oil refineries in Russia'sKrasnoyarsk region.

The source said drones also targeted Russia's Kushchevsk military airfield in the same region.

Intelligence agencies in the US have determined that Russian President Vladimir Putin most likely did not order opposition leaderAlexei Navalny to be killed, according to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ).

Mr Navalny, one of Mr Putin's fiercest critics, died atanArctic prison camp in February at the age of 47.

His allies, including his wife, accused the Russian leader of having him murdered - an accusation the Kremlin has always denied.

But after a recent assessment based on a range of information - including some classified intelligence and an analysis ofpublic facts - US intelligence agencies do not believe Mr Putin ordered the death of his opponent.

The assessment also took into account the timing of the death and how itovershadowed Mr Putin's presidential re-election in March, the WSJ cited someof its sources as saying.

The paper quoted sources as saying the finding had been "broadlyaccepted within the intelligence community and shared by severalagencies, including the Central Intelligence Agency, the Officeof the Director of National Intelligence and the StateDepartment's intelligence unit".

Responding to the report, Leonid Volkov, a senior Navalny aide, called the findings naive and ridiculous, the WSJ reported.

A Russian oil refinery has partially suspended operations after being damaged in a suspected Ukrainian drone attack, the Russian TASS news agency says.

A large fire broke out at the Slavyansk oil refinery in the Krasnoyarsk region after being hit with 10 Ukrainian drones, thesecurity director at Slavyansk ECO Group, was quoted as saying.

They said some of the damage caused may be hidden so the "work of the plant has been partially suspended".

Earlier today, Roman Siniagovskyi, head of the Slavyansk administrative district said the distillation column was damaged during the alleged strike.

Russia's Defence Ministry said its air defence units had intercepted and destroyed 66 Ukrainian drones over the Krasnoyarsk region, and two more over the Crimean Peninsula.

A source from the Security Service of Ukraine confirmed that Ukrainian drones had been launched at the Slavyansk and Ilsky oil refineries and had caused fires at the facilities.

The source said drones also targeted Russia's Kushchevsk military airfield in the same region.