Ukraine-Russia war: Hundreds of Russians evacuated in 'unprecedented' move
Russia has evacuated 300 people from its border city of Belgorod because of increasingly frequent Ukrainian attacks.
The largest evacuation from a major Russian city since the conflict began follows an uptick in strikes on the area, which sits less than 20 miles from the Ukrainian border.
Vyacheslav Gladkov, regional governor, said some 300 former Belgorod residents are now being housed in temporary accommodation in the towns of Stary Oskol, Gubkin and the Korochansky district.
“Over the past 24 hours, we received 1,300 requests to send Belgorod children to school camps away from the city in other regions,” he added.
The deadliest Ukrainian attack on Belgorod saw 25 people, including five children, killed on December 30. That strike came amid a flurry of heavy Russian bombardments on Ukrainian cities, which killed scores of civilians.
The latest such attack on Monday resulted in four deaths, Ukrainian officials said, as Moscow’s forces fired missiles and drones at targets across the country.
03:02 PM GMT
That's all for today
Thank you for following our coverage of the war in Ukraine today.
03:00 PM GMT
Today's headlines
A wave of Russian missile and drone strikes across Ukraine left five dead and more than 30 others injured
Russia claimed it had only targeted Ukraine’s “military-industrial complex” despite the civilian casualties
A 16-year-old boy has been arrested after a Russian Su-34 fighter jet was torched at an air base in Chelyabinsk last week, it emerged.
Ukrainian poet Maksym Kryvtsov, who shot to fame after the 2014 EuroMaidan Revolution, has been killed on the front line.
Russia has revived the Soviet-era Smersh counter-intelligence agency, the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) said.
The Russian air force accidentally bombed a town in occupied Luhansk, injuring civilians.
Russia has evacuated 300 people from the border city of Belgorod after an uptick in Ukrainian air raids
Viacheslav Shapovalov, former Ukrainian deputy defence minister, has been charged with embezzlement after purchasing almost £20million ($25million) of unusable body armour
Suspected Russian drones are regularly being spotted over army bases in Germany where Nato is training Ukrainian soldiers, it was reported.
02:40 PM GMT
Pictured: Dog assists rescue efforts
02:32 PM GMT
Watch: Ukrainian civilian rescued from underneath rubble
02:17 PM GMT
Explosion on Russian railway
A section of railway near the city of Nizhny Tagil in Russia’s Urals region was hit by a “bang”, the TASS and RBC news agencies reported on Monday.
Russian mainstream media uses the term “bang” as a euphemism for an explosion.
Baza, a Russian media outlet with security sources, said the blast on the railway line took place near the station of San-Donato, near an oil depot.
The cause of the explosion is not currently known.
01:59 PM GMT
Suspected Russian drones 'spying' on Ukrainian troops training in Germany
Suspected Russian drones are regularly being spotted over army bases in Germany where Nato is training Ukrainian soldiers, it has been reported.
Ukrainians learning to operate Leopard tanks have been observed repeatedly by overhead drones, according to the German tabloid Bild.
Marcus Faber, a German MP, said he suspected Russia was responsible but did not provide any evidence.
The German army has “a huge amount of catching up to do when it comes to drones”, he warned.
Andreas Schwarz, another MP, added: “We must not allow Russia to spy on military training areas with drones.”
Germany trained at least 6,000 Ukrainian soldiers in 2023.
01:42 PM GMT
EU condemns Russia for using North Korea missiles
The European Union has condemned Russia’s use of North Korean missiles in Ukraine.
Peter Stano, spokesperson for the EU’s external action service, said it would work to bring any country that assists Russia’s war in Ukraine to justice.
“Therefore, of course, we condemn any foreign arms supplies to Russia,” he said.
“Potential arms deliveries from North Korea to Russia might also constitute a violation of UN Security Council resolutions and UN sanctions, so of course we take this very seriously.”
01:21 PM GMT
Dogs run away from Kharkiv rescue shelter after strikes
Four dogs ran away from an animal rescue shelter in Kharkiv when it was damaged during Russian attacks this morning.
Suspilne, Ukraine’s state broadcaster, said the hounds had fled in fright after windows at the shelter were shattered in the blast.
They have all since been recaptured.
Yaryna Vintonyuk, a volunteer, said: “There is nowhere to relocate them, so today we plan to seal the windows to keep the heat in.”
12:53 PM GMT
Russian rapper who attended 'almost naked' party 'called up'
A Russian rapper who was jailed for attending an “almost naked” party wearing only a sock was taken to a military enlistment centre to be called up but later failed the fitness test, it has been reported.
Vacio, whose real name is Nikolai Vasiliev, was one of the celebrities and socialites at the Moscow party on December 20 which stirred up controversy for falling foul of Vladimir Putin’s crackdown on decadence and gay rights.
He was jailed on December 22 for 15 days and fined 200,000 rubles (£1,731) after being charged with spreading propaganda about “non-traditional sexual relations”.
Moskovsky Komsomolets reports that on Friday, the day he was due for release, Mr Vasiliev was taken to a military enlistment centre and handed call-up papers.
But he later swore at police officers and was duly re-arrested on charges of petty hooliganism, the newspaper said. He is yet to appear in court to face the charges.
The paper said he will now also not be called up to fight in Ukraine after failing a fitness test.
12:01 PM GMT
Ukrainian ex-minister charged with embezzlement
A former deputy defence minister has been charged with embezzlement after purchasing almost £20million ($25million) of unusable body armour, Ukraine’s prosecutor general’s office has said.
Viacheslav Shapovalov has been charged along with three other former defence officials who are accused of purchasing 50,000 bulletproof vests whose quality was so poor they could not be used.
The armour was purchased from a foreign company whose ultimate owners are Russian, the office said.
Mr Shapovalov is in custody awaiting trial on other corruption charges and is facing up to 12 years in prison if convicted.
11:33 AM GMT
In pictures: Clean-up operations after Russian strikes
11:19 AM GMT
Russia evacuates 300 civilians from regular-attacked border city
Russia has evacuated 300 people from the border city of Belgorod because of increasingly regular Ukrainian attacks.
It is the largest evacuation from a major Russian city since the conflict began.
Some 300 former Belgorod residents are now being housed in temporary accommodation in the towns of Stary Oskol, Gubkin and the Korochansky district, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.
The city, which is just 20 miles from the border, has been a regular target for retaliatory Ukrainian air strikes in recent weeks.
11:03 AM GMT
Russia accidentally drops bomb on occupied Luhansk
Russia accidentally bombed a town in occupied Luhansk, the Moscow-installed leader of the region has said.
Leonid Pasechnik said a FAB-250 munition struck Rubizhne but that there were no injuries.
Locals were evacuated and five are now in temporary accommodation, he said.
“An investigation and operational team of the interior ministry, as well as representatives of the ministry of emergency situations and the military commandant’s office are working on the site,” Mr Pasechnik said.
The incident comes just a week after a similar incident in the village of Petropavlovska, Voronezh, where an inadvertent strike by a Russian jet destroyed six houses.
10:48 AM GMT
Russia claims to hit 'military-industrial complex' despite civilian deaths
Russia has claimed its air strikes this morning struck Ukraine’s “military industrial complex”, despite the attacks killing and wounding civilians.
Moscow’s defence ministry said: “This morning, a group strike with long-range sea- and air-based precision weapons, including the Kinzhal hypersonic missile system, was launched against Ukrainian military-industrial complex facilities.”
Ukrainian authorities say four people have died and at least 30 were injured in the wave of strikes on cities across the country.
10:25 AM GMT
Ukraine shoots down 18 of 51 Russian missiles
Ukrainian anti-air defences shot down 18 of the 51 missiles launched by Russia over the country on Monday morning.
Ukraine’s air force said four hypersonic Kinzhal rockets, seven S-300/S-400 anti-aircraft missiles, 24 Kh-101/Kh-555/Kh-55 cruise missiles, eight Kh-22 cruise missiles, six Iskander-M ballistic missiles and two Kh-31P air missiles were launched.
It said that its forces shot down 18 of the 24 Kh-101/Kh-555/Kh-55 missiles, as well as all eight drones that attacked this morning.
“It should be added that not all of the enemy missiles that failed to be shot down reached their targets,” the air force said.
10:15 AM GMT
In pictures: Aftermath of Russian air strikes
10:02 AM GMT
ISW: Ukraine in new year strike campaign on Crimea
Ukraine is conducting a new year strike campaign on occupied Crimea, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a US-based think tank, has said.
“Ukrainian and Russian reporting indicates that Ukrainian missiles and drones are penetrating Russian air defences in occupied Crimea and have successfully struck some intended targets,” it said.
The think tank said strikes on the Saky airfield and the cities of Sevastopol and Yevpatoria were part of a “multi-day strike campaign” on “Russian rear areas” across the peninsula.
“ISW will not assess the intent of the current Ukrainian strike campaign against Russian rear areas in occupied Crimea at this time,” it said.
09:37 AM GMT
Russia revives Soviet-era Smersh counter-intelligence agency
Russia has revived the Soviet-era Smersh counter-intelligence agency, the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said.
The organisation is an abbreviation of the Russian phrase for “death to spies” and was made famous by its fictionalised portrayal in James Bond.
In its latest defence intelligence briefing, the MoD said Russian operatives had been pictured wearing Smersh uniform patches.
“It is unclear whether the new name indicates any substantive new capabilities or role for Russia’s CI [counter-intelligence] function, or whether it is merely a re-badging,” the MoD said.
“However, it provides another example of how the Russian authorities consciously couch the Russia-Ukraine conflict in the spirit of the Second World War, and their strong focus on the supposed infiltration of external threats into the country.”
09:26 AM GMT
Pictured: Dogs of war
09:10 AM GMT
Ukrainian poet killed on front line
A Ukrainian poet who shot to fame after the 2014 EuroMaidan Revolution has been killed on the front line.
Maksym Kryvtsov, 33, had fought for Ukraine since the war in Donbas against a group of separatists started that year.
PEN Ukraine, a writers’ association, announced his death on Facebook. The date and circumstances of his death were not disclosed.
08:50 AM GMT
Three dead and 33 injured after Russian strikes
Three people have died and 33 others are injured after Russian missile attacks across Ukraine on Monday morning.
Oleksiy Kuleba, an adviser to Volodymyr Zelensky, said one woman died in Kryvyi Rih and another person was killed in Khmelnytskyi.
He confirmed one person was injured in Kryvyi Rih, 24 wounded in Novomoskovsk, two in Kharkiv and four in Zaporizhzhia.
A woman, 63, was found dead in the rubble of a house in Zmiiv, Kharkiv, where two others were pulled out injured but alive, the regional prosecutor’s office said.
Serhiy Lysak, governor of Dnipropetrovsk, said: “The mad enemy once again struck civilians.”
“Directed missiles at people.”
08:14 AM GMT
Boy, 16, arrested after Russian fighter jet torched
A 16-year-old boy has been arrested after a Russian Su-34 fighter jet was torched at an air base in Chelyabinsk, it has been reported.
The aeroplane was set alight on January 4 and Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR) released a video of the arsonist in the act.
Ukrainska Pravda reported the same day that a HUR source had claimed responsibility for the fire.
The boy, from Dagestan, was arrested on January 5 and has been put into pre-trial detention.
Russia’s Tass news agency reported the same day that evidence of the suspect’s communications with Ukrainian intelligence had been uncovered.
07:57 AM GMT
Russian missiles wound 24 in one city
Russia’s early morning missile attacks on Ukraine have left 24 people wounded in one city alone.
Five children were among the two dozen injured in Novomoskovsk, Dnipropetrovsk, after a fire broke out.
Serhiy Lysak, the regional governor, said three administrative buildings, two petrol stations and a five-storey apartment block have been damaged.
07:46 AM GMT
Japan promises Ukraine £29m for anti-drone defences
Japan has promised to provide £29million ($37million) to a Nato initiative supplying anti-drone defences to Ukraine.
Yoko Kamikawa, the foreign minister, visited Ukraine on Sunday and said Japan would also supply 12 generators to help Ukraine through the winter.
Tokyo is set to host a conference on Ukrainian reconstruction in February.
07:41 AM GMT
In pictures: Overnight damage in Kharkiv
07:25 AM GMT
Russia launches wave of missile strikes across Ukraine
Russia launched a wave of drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities on Monday morning.
The Ukrainian air force said Tu-95MS strategic bombers and MiG-31 fighter jets had attacked, with air raid alerts activated nationwide.
Explosions have been reported in the cities of Kyiv, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk and Khmelnytskyi.
Oleksandr Vilkul, mayor of the southern Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, said: “The enemy is viciously attacking peaceful cities.”
The Ukrainian armed forces’ southern command said it shot down all eight Shahed drones launched by Russia overnight.
Moscow’s defence ministry said it had intercepted a Ukrainian missile attack on Belgorod, a border city 20 miles from Ukraine.
