Ukraine-Russia war news – latest: Kyiv steps up counteroffensive with assault in Zaporizhzhia
A significant Ukrainian force has launched an assault on Russian lines in the southern Zaporizhzhia region.
The Kremlin has been claiming to have repelled Ukrainian attacks across various points for a number of days, but Russian military bloggers noted an increase in clashes overnight Wednesday and into Thursday.
Appearing to confirm an operation was underway, the Ukrainian deputy defence minister, Hanna Maliar, said Russia was “actively on the defensive” in the Orihiv area of Zaporizhzhia region.
Zaporizhzhia – one of four partly occupied regions illegally annexed by the Kremlin – has long been seen as a likely point of a main Ukrainian strike, but Kyiv has worked to mask its plans by launching attacks on multiple points across the vast frontlines.
Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin’s forces have been accused of attacking the Ukrainian city of Kherson during evacuation efforts following the collapse of the nearby Kakhovka dam.
The Prosecutor General’s office said two other people were wounded in the incident and that four were hurt in a separate location, and that a war crimes investigation had been opened.
Key Points
One killed in Russian 'targeted strikes' on Kherson during evacuation - Kyiv
Mines dislodged by Kakhovka dam attack could pose danger ‘for decades’
Dam attack will have ‘same long-term effect’ as Chernobyl, warns NGO
Three killed in flooding in Kherson after dam collapse
Ukraine holds initiative along multiple sectors of war frontline, says UK MoD
Ukraine says it intercepted call proving Russia blew up Kakhovka dam
09:27 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Ukraine‘s domestic security service said on Friday it had intercepted a telephone call proving a Russian “sabotage group” blew up the Kakhovka hydroelectric station and dam in southern Ukraine.
The destruction of the facility on Tuesday unleashed mass flooding, forcing thousands of residents to flee and wreaking environmental havoc.
Russia and its proxy officials in Ukraine have blamed Kyiv for destroying the dam but have offered varying explanations.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) posted a one-and-a-half minute audio clip on its Telegram channel of the alleged conversation, which featured two men who appeared to be discussing the fallout from the disaster in Russian.
“They (the Ukrainians) didn’t strike it. That was our sabotage group,” said one of the men, who the SBU described as a Russian soldier. “They wanted to, like, scare (people) with that dam.”
“It didn’t go according to plan, and (they did) more than what they planned for.”
The SBU did not offer further details of the conversation or its participants. It said it had opened a criminal investigation into war crimes and “ecocide”.
“The invaders wanted to blackmail Ukraine by blowing up the dam and staged a man-made disaster in the south of our country,” the SBU said in a statement.
Ukraine attacks Putin’s troops as counteroffensive steps up
10:30 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
A significant Ukrainian force has launched an assault on Russian lines in the southern Zaporizhzhia region – with a surge in attacks that points towards its counteroffensive shifting into high gear.
A number of US and Ukrainian officials suggested this was the start in earnest of Kyiv’s bid to reclaim territory lost to Russian occupation during Moscow’s invasion. Ukraine‘s commanders and government have always said there would be no official announcement of the start of the counteroffensive and there has already been an increase in military activity all week.
The combat against Russian positions – including intense fighting outside of the town of Tokmak, a Russian logistical hub – is said to involve Western-supplied tanks, armoured vehicles and infantry backed by artillery.
The Kremlin has repeatedly claimed to have repelled Ukrainian attacks – that it calls the counteroffensive – across various points of the war’s frontlines for a number of days, but Russian military bloggers noted an increase in clashes overnight Wednesday and into Thursday. One said: “Wave after wave of the enemy is trying to break through our defence.”
Ukraine attacks Putin’s troops as counteroffensive steps up
Russian intelligence investigating drone strike on city of Voronezh - Kremlin
10:10 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
The Kremlin said on Friday that Russia‘s intelligence services were investigating a drone attack on the Russian city of Voronezh, which it blamed on Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the security services were working to clarify details of the incident.
The regional governor said earlier on Friday that three people had been lightly wounded when a drone struck an apartment building in the city, about 180 km (110 miles) from the border with Ukraine.
There was no immediate comment on the episode from Ukraine.#
Russia and China to continue expanding military cooperation - TASS
09:50 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russia and China will continue to expand their military cooperation, rUSSIAN Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov was quoted as saying on Friday by the TASS news agency.
Gerasimov has invited his Chinese counterpart to visit Russia, news agencies reported.
“The practice of joint operational and combat training of the Russian and Chinese Armed Forces should remain an important area of further activities,” Gerasimov was quoted as saying.
Ukraine security service says it intercepted call proving Russia destroyed Kakhovka dam
09:15 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Ukraine‘s domestic security service said on Friday it had intercepted a telephone call proving Russian forces blew up the Kakhovka hydroelectric station and dam in southern Ukraine‘s Kherson region.
The Security Service of Ukraine posted a one-and-a-half minute audio clip of the alleged conversation on its Telegram channel.
In pictures: Ukrainian soldiers on the frontline in Luhansk region
08:56 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Pictures show Ukrainian soldiers working during a combat operation on the frontline near Kreminna, Luhansk region.
One killed in latest Russian air strike on Ukraine, Kyiv says
08:28 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russia unleashed a new air strike on Ukraine overnight, killing at least one person in a combined assault of cruise missiles and attack drones, Ukrainian authorities said.
The Ukrainian military reported shooting down four out of six missiles launched during the attack, which the air force said lasted around six hours, and 10 out of 16 drones.
The interior ministry said one person had been killed, three were wounded, and four buildings were destroyed from falling debris.
It posted images on the Telegram messaging app of firefighters attending to the smouldering wreckage of what appeared to be residential homes.
The air force also said two cruise missiles had struck a civilian object in the central Ukrainian region of Cherkasy during an earlier attack on Thursday evening.
Regional governor Ihor Taburets said at least eight people had been wounded in that strike, which he said hit a carwash and an industrial object.
Moscow in recent weeks has stepped up regular air strikes against Ukraine as Kyiv prepared for a counteroffensive to try to take back Russian-occupied territory.
Russia reports heavy fighting in Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine
07:52 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russia‘s army on Friday reported heavy fighting in the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine, saying over 21 Ukrainian tanks had been destroyed in battles across key sections of the front line.
A spokesman for Russia‘s Vostok group of forces said 13 Ukrainian tanks were destroyed in battles in the Zaporizhzhia region and eight in the Donetsk region. It reported artillery, drone and infantry battles.
Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield claims.
Russian military bloggers said there were intense battles on the Zaporizhzhia front near the city of Orikhiv as Ukraine sought to pierce Russian defences and drive a wedge through Russian forces.
Russia said Ukraine began a major offensive on Sunday morning, first in southern Donetsk, but Moscow said its forces repelled the attacks. Ukraine accused Moscow of spreading lies.
Damaged reservoir can still help Ukrainian nuclear plant, says UN body
07:06 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
The UN nuclear watchdog has confirmed water is still being pumping to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant from the reservoir of the breached Ukrainian Nova Kakhovka dam.
The water is sufficient to cool the reactors and pumps are still operating at water levels earlier thought to make this impossible, the International Atomic Energy Agency said.
The plant, occupied by Russia since the early days of its invasion last year, also has other water sources to fall back on if the reservoir’s water is no longer available, the IAEA said.
It added that these include a large cooling pond above the reservoir with several months’ worth of water.
“In these difficult and challenging circumstances, this is providing some more time before possibly switching to alternative water supplies including the large cooling pond next to the plant,” IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said in a statement.
Four cruise missiles, 10 attack drones downed overnight, says Ukraine
06:41 , Arpan Rai
Ukraine’s military has shot down four cruise missiles and 10 attack drones during a Russian air strike overnight, the air force said in a statement this morning.
It said Russian forces had launched 16 drones and six cruise missiles during the attack, and that two other cruise missiles had struck a civilian object in central Ukraine during an earlier attack last evening.
The overnight barrage of Russian missile attack comes after a brief lull of a week. Russian forces had amped up the overnight missile attacks in May to overwhelm and exhaust Ukraine’s air defences in more than 17 separate volleys.
Western tanks appear on Ukraine battlefield as heavy fighting starts
05:44 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Powerful Western tanks and ammunition sent to Ukraine by its allies have finally emerged on the battlefield as Russian forces report a surge in attacks that suggest Kyiv’s counteroffensive is shifting into high gear.
The combat against Russian positions – including intense fighting outside of the town of Tokmak, a Russian logistical hub – is said to involve Western-supplied tanks, armoured vehicles and infantry backed by artillery.
Russian military bloggers confirmed the presence of at least two Leopard 2 tanks sent by Germany, in a first such use of its war vehicle as they shared visuals from fortified positions along the frontline in the continuing full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
The Leopard II main battle tanks were also seen in the Zaporizhzhia region where a significant Ukrainian force scaled up their assault on Russian lines in the southern region in the past 24 hours.
Russian Colonel General Alexander Romanchuk claimed, without providing evidence, that Moscow’s forces had destroyed three Leopard tanks. The officer also said that the general in charge of Russia’s troops in Ukraine, chief of the general staff Valery Gerasimov, briefed President Vladimir Putin on the battles in Zaporizhzhia.
At least two US-produced M113 armoured personnel carriers, or APCs, were also seen in a video shared by Russian military bloggers, reported FT.com.
Russia continues to shell Kherson evacuation points to inflict more damage, says Zelensky
04:45 , Arpan Rai
Russian forces continue to shell the Kherson region despite it reeling in the aftermath of the Nova Kakhovka dam’s destruction, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said.
“Russian terrorists are trying to further aggravate the situation they have caused with their ecocide. This is absolutely deliberate. They continue to shell Kherson and the communities of the region, which have already been flooded by terrorists,” Mr Zelensky said.
He added that the Russian forces are also shelling evacuation points “which is a manifestation of evil that perhaps no terrorists in the world, except for Russian ones, have ever done”.
He added that the Russian forces in the region “have completely abandoned people on the left bank of Kherson region to their fate”.
“The catastrophe has been expanding there for two days now. And this is also an absolutely conscious choice of the Russian leadership. There is no one left in the world today who does not see that Russia is ruled by savages. Savages who themselves are the biggest disaster on the planet today,” Mr Zelensky said.
Pentagon readies new $2bn air defence package for Ukraine – report
04:26 , Arpan Rai
The US is set to announce a new arms package for Ukraine valued at more than $2bn (£1.5bn) as soon as today, officials from the Biden administration have said, reported Bloomberg.
The funds under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative will be heavy on air defence munitions and will help Ukraine purchase Hawk missile launchers and two types of advanced Patriot air defence missiles, the report said.
Zelensky cheers ‘results’ in Bakhmut in Ukraine’s counteroffensive battle
03:52 , Arpan Rai
Volodymyr Zelensky has hailed what he described as “results” in heavy fighting in Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine, one of the pockets where Ukrainian counteroffensive is underway.
“There is very heavy fighting in Donetsk region,” Mr Zelensky said in his daily video message, speaking from inside a train after visiting areas affected by the breach of the Kakhovka power dam.
“But there are results and I am grateful to those who achieved these results. Well done in Bakhmut. Step by step,” he said.
The war-time president referred to other areas where fighting is going on, but said he would provide no details.
Before-and-after satellite images show profound toll of Ukraine dam collapse
03:00 , Eleanor Noyce
Before-and-after images of the area downstream from a dam that collapsed Tuesday vividly show the extent of the devastation of a large, flooded swathe of southern Ukraine.
Before the Kakhovka dam on the Dnieper River broke, farm fields appear green and crossed by peaceful streets and farm roads and dotted with trees. Afterward, only metal roofs and treetops poke above the murky water. Greenhouses and homes are almost entirely submerged.
The pre-collapse satellite photos were taken in May and early June. Photos of the same area taken after the dam collapsed clearly show how much of it has become unlivable. Brown water as high as people covers much of the territory captured in the images.
Read more:
Before-and-after satellite images show profound toll of Ukraine dam collapse
ICYMI: Zelensky visits flood-hit Kherson to survey damage after dam breach
02:00 , Eleanor Noyce
Volodymyr Zelensky has visited the flood-hit areas of Kherson to evaluate the response to damage caused by the Kakhovka dam attack.
More than 40,000 people in areas downstream from the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant are at risk of losing their homes and livelihoods after the breach unleashed torrents of flood water from the Dnipro river.
“In Kherson, I visited a crossing point where people are being evacuated from flooded areas,” the president of Ukraine wrote, sharing footage of his visit.
“Our task is to protect lives and help people as much as possible. I thank the rescuers and volunteers.”
Zelensky visits flood-hit Kherson to survey damage after dam breach
Kremlin says ammonia pipeline blast is negative for Black Sea grain deal
01:00 , Eleanor Noyce
The Kremlin said on Thursday that there would be a “negative impact” on the fate of a Black Sea grain deal from a blast which damaged a pipeline used to export Russian ammonia via Ukraine that Moscow wants restarted.
The Togliatti-Odesa pipeline, which once pumped up to 2.5 million tonnes of ammonia annually for global export to Ukraine‘s Pivdennyi port on the Black Sea from Togliatti in western Russia, has lain idle since the start of the war in February last year.
Russia has accused Ukrainian forces of blowing up a part of the pipeline, the world’s longest carrying ammonia, in Ukraine‘s Kharkiv region on Monday. The regional Ukrainian governor said Russia had shelled the pipeline on Tuesday. Neither side provided evidence to back their allegations.
Asked by reporters about how the damaged pipeline could affect the fate of the Black Sea grain deal, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “It can only have a negative impact.”
He described it as “yet another complication in terms of extending the deal,” adding that Russia did not know “what kind of destruction” there had been to the ammonia pipeline.
Russia has threatened to walk away from the Black Sea grain deal on 17 July if demands to improve its own food and fertiliser exports are not met. The deal, struck in July last year, facilitates the “safe navigation” of grain, foodstuffs and fertilisers - including ammonia - for export to global markets.
Renowned human rights campaigner Oleg Orlov on trial for ‘discrediting' Russian military
Friday 9 June 2023 00:45 , Eleanor Noyce
The co-chair of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning human rights group Memorial, Oleg Orlov, went on trial in Moscow Thursday, charged with “discrediting” the Russian military in his criticism of Russia’s campaign in Ukraine.
If convicted, he could face up to five years in prison.
Orlov has been fined twice for anti-war pickets, with the new charges based on an article he wrote denouncing Russian aggression in Ukraine.
Discrediting the Russian military is a criminal offence under a law adopted after Russia sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022. The law is regularly used against Kremlin critics.
Memorial and its supporters have called the trial politically motivated.
Read more:
Renowned human rights campaigner Oleg Orlov on trial for “discrediting” Russian military
ICYMI: Zelensky won’t attend G20 summit in India, New Delhi confirms
Thursday 8 June 2023 23:45 , Eleanor Noyce
Volodymyr Zelensky will not attend the main G20 conference as invites for the summit this year were sent out only to the members of the Group of 20, host country India has confirmed.
The confirmation by Delhi has put an end to speculation and expectations that Mr Zelensky would participate in the event that will bring together world leaders of major economies in Delhi.
Mr Zelensky had recently met Indian prime minister Narendra Modi in Hiroshima, Japan on the sidelines of the G7 summit.
Speaking during a special press conference marking nine years of the foreign policy of the Narendra Modi government, foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said invitations were being sent out to G20 members only.
Shweta Sharma has the full story:
Zelensky won’t attend G20 summit in India, New Delhi confirms
Eight injured in two missile strikes in central Ukraine - governor
Thursday 8 June 2023 22:45 , Eleanor Noyce
Two missiles hit sites near the city of Uman in central Ukraine on Thursday, injuring eight people, the regional governor said.
Ihor Taburets, governor of Cherkasy region, wrote on the Telegram messaging app that the missiles hit an industrial site and a car wash in the evening. He said two of the injured were seriously hurt, according to preliminary information.
Pictures posted on his Telegram channel showed emergency teams combing through sites largely reduced to rubble, with smoke rising in the background.
The strikes occurred during air raid alerts announced throughout Ukraine for about an hour in mid-evening.
Reuters could not independently verify the accounts.
A missile attack in April on an apartment building in Uman killed 23 residents, in the first such strike in several weeks.
Rishi Sunak and Joe Biden stress ‘unwavering support’ for Ukraine
Thursday 8 June 2023 21:45 , Eleanor Noyce
Rishi Sunak and Joe Biden stressed their “unwavering support” for Ukraine, with the president saying the US will help Kyiv for “as long as it takes”.
The two leaders emphasised the need for long-term security arrangements for the war-torn nation as deterrence against aggression from Russian president Vladimir Putin.
At a joint press conference at the White House on Thursday, Mr Biden was asked about hesitation about more funding for Ukraine among some lawmakers in the rival Republican Party.
The Democratic US president said: “I believe we’ll have the funding necessary to support Ukraine as long as it takes.
Sophie Wingate reports:
Rishi Sunak and Joe Biden stress ‘unwavering support’ for Ukraine
Ukraine goes on the attack in Zaporizhzhia – as counteroffensive steps up
Thursday 8 June 2023 21:13 , Eleanor Noyce
A significant Ukrainian force has launched an assault on Russian lines in the southern Zaporizhzhia region – with a surge in attacks that pointed towards its counteroffensive is shifting into high gear.
A number of US and Ukrainian officials suggested this was the start in earnest of Kyiv’s bid to reclaim territory lost to Russian occupation during Moscow’s invasion. Ukraine‘s commanders and government have always said there would be no official announcement of the start of the counteroffensive and there has been an increase in military activity all week.
The combat against Russian positions – including intense fighting outside of the town of Tokmak, a Russian logistical hub, is said to involve western-supplied tanks and armoured vehicles and infantry backed by artillery.
Chris Stevenson reports:
Ukraine goes on the attack in Zaporizhzhia – as counteroffensive steps up
Ukraine tells ‘clown’ Tucker Carlson to check his facts after pro-Kremlin rant in first Twitter show
Thursday 8 June 2023 20:20 , Sam Rkaina
The Ukrainian government has branded Tucker Carlson a “clown” and told him to check his facts after he launched a pro-Kremlin rant on his first Twitter show.
The former Fox News host told viewers that a “fair person would conclude” that Ukraine destroyed the Nova Kakhovka damn which collapsed and caused massive flooding in the country.
Carlson, a popular voice for the Kremlin, added that the dam was “effectively Russian” and that the damage “hurts Russia” more than Ukraine.
Click here for the full story.
'Graveyard' of dead fish forms in southern Ukraine after Kakhovka dam destruction
Thursday 8 June 2023 19:00 , Sam Rkaina
A graveyard of dead fish has formed in southern Ukraine after the Nova Kakhovka dam was breached.
Footage from the area close to the destroyed dam shows thousands of fish washed up in an area of ââthe reservoir, which has seen a rapid shallowing of the water.
“By blowing up the Kakhovskaya HPP, the aggressor caused an unheard-of act of ecocide, the victims of which were not only people, but also thousands of innocent animals,” the State Agency of Land Reclamation and Fisheries of Ukraine wrote, sharing the footage.
Trapped villagers saved from roofs in flooded south Ukraine as more await help
Thursday 8 June 2023 18:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Rescuers in boats have saved hundreds of people from the roofs of flooded houses after the massive dam breach in southern Ukraine, volunteers and officials said on Thursday, but others were getting more desperate as they waited for help.
Friends and family posted frantic appeals in online chatrooms with names, photos and GPS locations of residents, including some children and many elderly people, who were still waiting to be picked up.
The coordinator of a volunteer group on the Telegram messaging app said the appeals were arriving continuously and getting more urgent than the day before because people were running out of food and drinking water.
Ukraine and Russia have both accused each other of blowing up the giant Kakhovka dam on the Dnipro River, which burst in the early hours of Tuesday. On the Russian-controlled left bank of the river, Moscow-installed officials have ordered residents of several districts to evacuate.
Vladimir Saldo, the top Russian-installed official in the Kherson region, said midday Thursday that approximately 4,300 people had been evacuated, including 171 children and 42 people with disabilities. More than 14,000 homes have been flooded, emergency services said.
Another official, Andrei Alekseyenko, said the level of the Dnipro had risen to 12 metres in the worst-hit areas, Oleshky and Hola Prystan. He said 344 people had been saved by boat from roofs and upper floors.
In Telegram channels, some people sent grateful messages for successful rescues.
Satellite images reveal scale of destruction after Nova Kakhovka dam attack
Thursday 8 June 2023 17:30 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Satellite images have revealed the damage from the massive collapse of a major dam and hydroelectric power plant in southern Ukraine.
The critical soviet-era Nova Kakhovka dam, which lies along the Dnipro river in Russia-held Kherson, was blown up on Tuesday and collapsed soon after, sending water gushing into nearby villages and towns in the region with a 42,000-strong population.
The UN said the collapse will have “catastrophic” and “far-reaching consequences” for thousands of people with the loss of homes, food, safe water and livelihoods even as Russia and Ukraine traded accusations over the incident.
The latest satellite images provided by Maxar Technologies to The Independent on Tuesday showed the “largely destroyed” Nova Kakhovka dam and the hydroelectric plant as well as wide swathes of heavily flooded towns and villages.
Satellite images reveal scale of destruction after Nova Kakhovka dam attack
Cat rescued from devastating Kherson floods after damn collapse
Thursday 8 June 2023 17:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
A cat was rescued from flooding in Kherson after the destruction of a huge hydroelectric dam on front lines between Russian and Ukrainian forces.
The Kakhovka dam, under Russian control, was blown up on Tuesday, 6 June, collapsing shortly after.
Water has surged into nearby villages, causing widespread flooding in region with a 42,000-strong population.
The incident constitutes a “war crime,” Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
It is the “largest man-made environmental disaster in Europe in decades,” the Ukrainian president added.
Cat rescued from devastating Kherson floods after damn collapse
Ukraine on manoeuvres in its counterpunch against Russia: ‘This is our big shot we can’t screw it up’
Thursday 8 June 2023 16:30 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
The blowing up of the Nova Kakhovka dam will delay an expected armoured thrust in the area by Ukrainian forces, but military action in the preliminary stages of Kyiv’s counteroffensive continues across the frontline, writes Kim Sengupta.
The route along the dam near Kherson was one the Ukrainians would have taken to move armour – like tanks – and heavy equipment. There were also plans for landings on islands downstream, where fierce clashes have been taking place for some time. The submerging of these pathways means that tactics are redrawn and troops and weapons repositioned.
Ukraine on manoeuvres in its counterpunch against Russia: ‘This is our big shot’
WHO rushes supplies to Ukraine, readies to tackle disease in flood areas
Thursday 8 June 2023 16:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
The World Health Organisation has rushed emergency supplies to flood-hit parts of Ukraine and are preparing to respond to an array of health risks including trauma, drowning and waterborne diseases like cholera, officials said on Thursday.
Russia and Ukraine have traded blame for the bursting of the Soviet-era Kakhovka hydroelectric dam, which sent waters cascading across the war zone of southern Ukraine in the early hours of Tuesday, forcing tens of thousands to flee their homes.
“The impact of the region’s water supply sanitation systems and public health services cannot be underestimated,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press briefing.
“The WHO has rushed in to support the authorities and health care workers in preventive measures against waterborne diseases and to improve disease surveillance.”
Watch: Zelensky visits flood-hit Kherson to survey damage after dam breach
Thursday 8 June 2023 15:35 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky visited Kherson following widespread flooding caused by the collapse of nearby Kakhovka dam.
Ukraine fears losing millions of tons of crops after dam collapse
Thursday 8 June 2023 15:13 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Ukraine could lose several million tons of crops because of flooding caused by the destruction of the Kakhovka dam in the south of the country, the Ukrainian agriculture ministry said on Thursday.
“Without a source of water supply, it is impossible to grow vegetables. Grain and oilseeds will be grown using an extensive model with low yields,” the ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said the dam’s destruction would flood tens of thousands of hectares of agricultural land in southern Ukraine and could turn at least 500,000 hectares of land left without irrigation into “deserts”.
The ministry said the flooded land would require a full agro-ecological assessment of the soil condition and in most cases special soil restoration methods would need to be applied.
It said vegetables, melons, grains and oilseeds were the main products which were grown on the affected land.
Ukraine is a major global grain and oilseeds grower and exporter.
The destruction of the dam on Tuesday, which Ukraine and Russia blame on each other, has also made it impossible to navigate parts of the Dnipro River and deprived Kyiv of an important agricultural export route, shipping authorities said.
Agriculture Minister Mykola Solsky also said the farm sector’s losses could be much higher than previously expected because the disaster inflicted “years” of damage on irrigation.
One killed in Russian 'targeted strikes' on Kherson during evacuation - Kyiv
Thursday 8 June 2023 14:01 , Eleanor Noyce
At least one person was killed after Russian forces shelled the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson in “targeted strikes” during evacuation efforts amid massive flooding, Ukraine’s prosecutor general said on Thursday.
“Due to targeted strikes by the occupiers during evacuation measures in the city, a civilian died,” it said in a statement on Telegram. “Two more people were injured. The data is being verified.”
Mapped: The damage caused by Ukraine’s devastated dam
Thursday 8 June 2023 14:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
War-torn Ukraine is reeling from the collapse of the Nova Kakhovka hydroelectric dam, which saw its reservoir burst causing chaos for miles around.
The catastrophe on Tuesday forced thousands of residents of nearby towns and villages to evacuate their homes as the floodwater barrelled towards them and left some climbing onto rooftops or into trees to escape the raging torrents.
Hundreds of thousands more have been left without access to clean drinking water in the region as a result of the eco-disaster on the Dnipro River, prompting relief workers to rush fresh supplies to the area as they struggle with the problems of mass resettlement.
Mapped: The damage caused by Ukraine’s devastated dam
Russian forces shell Kherson during flood evacuation
Thursday 8 June 2023 13:35 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
At least three people were wounded in Russian shelling of the Ukrainian city of Kherson on Thursday as people were being evacuated because of flooding caused by the collapse of the nearby Kakhovka dam, police said.
“The shelling began precisely during the evacuation of citizens whose homes were flooded,” Ukraine‘s Interior Ministry said in a statement.
It reiterated accusations that Russia has abandoned people in territory it has occupied in the Kherson region, adding: “And it continues to prevent Ukraine from saving the most valuable - human lives.”
A Reuters reporter in Kherson said he could hear what appeared to be artillery fire but was unable immediately to provide any details of the circumstances.
Kherson lies on the Dnipro, about 60 km (37 miles) downstream from the Kakhovka dam.
Kherson governor Oleksandr Prokudin said earlier on Thursday that 68% of the flooded territory in the Kherson region was on the Russian-occupied left bank of the Dnipro River.
Russia has accused Ukrainian forces of shelling rescue workers in Russian-occupied parts of the Kherson region, and each side blames the other for the destruction of the Kahkovka Hydroelectric Station and dam on Tuesday.
Sunak condemns ‘appalling act’ of destruction of Kakhovka dam
Thursday 8 June 2023 13:10 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
The destruction of of the Kakhovka dam in Ukraine was an “appalling act,” Rishi Sunak has said.
Speaking to broadcasters on his trip to the US, the Prime Minister said: “We’re still establishing definitively the cause of the attack on the dam in Ukraine, but I want people to know we’re playing our part to support the Ukrainians in their response.”
He added: “This is an appalling act and hundreds of thousands of people are being affected by it.”
Mr Sunak also condemned Russia‘s “illegal, unprovoked act of aggression” in invading Ukraine.
Kherson governor says Russian forces shelling city
Thursday 8 June 2023 12:41 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russian forces shelled the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson and nearby coastal areas on Thursday, the regional governor said on Thursday.
Governor Oleksandr Prokudin made the remark on the Telegram messaging app as emergency workers tried to evacuate people following flooding caused by the destruction of the nearby Kakhovka dam on Tuesday.
A Reuters reporter in Kherson said he could hear what appeared to be artillery fire but was unable immediately to provide any details of the circumstances. Russia has accused Ukrainian forces of shelling rescue workers in Russian-occupied parts of the Kherson region.
Kremlin accuses Ukraine of shelling Russian rescuers in dam flood zone
Thursday 8 June 2023 11:57 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
The Kremlin on Thursday accused Ukraine of shelling Russian rescue workers in the area flooded after the huge Kakhovka dam in Ukraine‘s Kherson region was breached earlier this week
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russian rescue workers in the area were working hard, but said the Ukrainian military was making their work more dangerous.
“The difficulty is that in a lot of places they (the rescuers) are forced to work in conditions of ongoing shelling from Ukraine, and this complicates their work,” Peskov told reporters.
He did not provide any immediate evidence for his assertion.
Ukrainian officials on Wednesday accused Russian forces of shelling rescue workers on the Kyiv-held right (west) bank of the Dnipro river. Moscow controls the left (east) bank.
The breach of the Kakhovka dam on Tuesday has led to massive flooding of the Dnipro river estuary downstream, with thousands evacuated and settlements on both side of the river inundated by water.
Peskov said that President Vladimir Putin was monitoring the situation in the region, but did not currently have any plans to visit the disaster area.
Thursday 8 June 2023 11:38 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
The water level at a reservoir in southern Ukraine is approaching a dangerous low after the destruction of the dam at the nearby Kakhovka Hydroelectric Station, the state company overseeing the facility said on Thursday.
Moscow and Kyiv blamed each other for the collapse of the dam on Tuesday, which unleashed flood water from the Dnipro River on a wide area of southern Ukraine.
Ihor Syrota, general director of Ukrhydroenergo, told Ukrainian television that a drop below the current water level at the Kakhovka Reservoir could affect the nearby Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station and water supply to other regions.
“We are reaching this dead zone, which is 12.70 (meters), after which there will be not be any water intake either for the cooling ponds at the Zaporizhzhia station...or...for all regions.”
The U.N. atomic watchdog said on Tuesday the plant, Europe’s largest, has enough water to cool its reactors for “several months” from a pond located above the reservoir.
Ukraine‘s nuclear energy company said on Thursday the situation was “stable and under control” at the Zaporizhzhia plant on Thursday morning.
Syrota added that Ukrhydroenergo was ready to work on an overlay across the damaged hydroelectric station and dam as soon as Russian forces left the eastern side of the Dnipro, and that it would take about two months to complete.
Zelensky won’t attend G20 summit in India, New Delhi confirms
Thursday 8 June 2023 11:17 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Volodymyr Zelensky will not attend the main G20 conference as invites for the summit this year were sent out only to the members of the Group of 20, host country India has confirmed.
The confirmation by Delhi has put an end to speculation and expectations that Mr Zelensky would participate in the event that will bring together world leaders of major economies in Delhi.
Mr Zelensky had recently met Indian prime minister Narendra Modi in Hiroshima, Japan on the sidelines of the G7 summit.
Speaking during a special press conference marking nine years of the foreign policy of the Narendra Modi government, foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said invitations were being sent out to G20 members only.
Zelensky won’t attend G20 summit in India, New Delhi confirms
Watch: Ukrainian drones drop water bottles to citizens stranded in Kherson flooding
Thursday 8 June 2023 11:07 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Footage released by Ukraine’s army appears to show drones delivering water bottles to people stranded by floodwaters in Russian-controlled areas of Kherson.
Water from the destroyed Kakhovka dam has gushed into nearby villages over the past 48 hours, and towns in the region with a 42,000-strong population are facing a humanitarian disaster.
In a video shared on social media, a resident can be seen reaching out the skylight of their house as a drone carrying a water bottle is lowered and dropped down.
Watch: Ukrainian drones drop water bottles to citizens stranded in Kherson flooding
Mines dislodged by Kakhovka dam attack could pose danger ‘for decades’
Thursday 8 June 2023 10:38 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Mines uprooted and dispersed by floodwaters surging downstream from the breached Kakhovka dam across swathes of southern Ukraine could pose a grave danger to civilians for decades to come, the Red Cross said.
The vast Soviet-era Kakhovka dam, under Russian control, was breached in the early hours of Tuesday, unleashing floodwaters across a swathe of the warzone and endangering the lives and welfare of tens of thousands of people.
Ukraine blamed Russia for blowing it up. Russia said Ukraine sabotaged the dam at the behest of the West to constrict water supplies to Crimea and to distract from a faltering offensive. Some Russian-backed officials said the dam may have collapsed.
The waters have also washed over countless land mines sown during the 15-month war and nobody now knows where they are: they could still be in the minefields or could be stuck in the river mud or in fields, gardens and roads across a vast area.
“In the past we knew where the hazards were. Now we don’t know. All we know is that they are somewhere downstream,” said Erik Tollefsen, head of the Weapon Contamination Unit at the International Committee of the Red Cross.
“It is with a certain horror that we look at the news coming out,” said Tollefsen in an audio clip, adding that World War Two mines found underwater in Denmark in 2015 were still active.
The war in Ukraine, the largest in Europe since World War Two, has left a vast amount of mines and unexploded ordnances across swathes of the country - a risk campaigners have been warning about since Russia sent in troops in February last year.
Three killed in Russian attack in eastern Ukraine - governor
Thursday 8 June 2023 09:57 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Overnight Russian shelling killed three people, including a four-year-old boy, in the town of Ukrainsk in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk, the regional governor said on Thursday.
Five people, including three children, were also wounded in the same attack, and two were wounded in atatcks elsewhere in the region, governor Pavlo Kirilenko wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
Reuters was unable to verify the report.
Watch: Ukrainian drones drop water to people stranded in Kherson flooding
Thursday 8 June 2023 09:39 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Satellite images reveal scale of destruction after Nova Kakhovka dam attack
Thursday 8 June 2023 09:25 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Satellite images have revealed the damage from the massive collapse of a major dam and hydroelectric power plant in southern Ukraine.
The critical soviet-era Nova Kakhovka dam, which lies along the Dnipro river in Russia-held Kherson, was blown up on Tuesday and collapsed soon after, sending water gushing into nearby villages and towns in the region with a 42,000-strong population.
The UN said the collapse will have “catastrophic” and “far-reaching consequences” for thousands of people with the loss of homes, food, safe water and livelihoods even as Russia and Ukraine traded accusations over the incident.
The latest satellite images provided by Maxar Technologies to The Independent on Tuesday showed the “largely destroyed” Nova Kakhovka dam and the hydroelectric plant as well as wide swathes of heavily flooded towns and villages.
Satellite images reveal scale of destruction after Nova Kakhovka dam attack
Mapped: The damage caused by Ukraine’s devastated dam
Thursday 8 June 2023 09:06 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
War-torn Ukraine is reeling from the collapse of the Nova Kakhovka hydroelectric dam, which saw its reservoir burst causing chaos for miles around.
The catastrophe on Tuesday forced thousands of residents of nearby towns and villages to evacuate their homes as the floodwater barrelled towards them and left some climbing onto rooftops or into trees to escape the raging torrents.
Hundreds of thousands more have been left without access to clean drinking water in the region as a result of the eco-disaster on the Dnipro River, prompting relief workers to rush fresh supplies to the area as they struggle with the problems of mass resettlement.
Mapped: The damage caused by Ukraine’s devastated dam
About 600 sq km of Ukraine's Kherson region under water after dam destroyed - governor
Thursday 8 June 2023 08:47 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
About 600 square kilometres, or 230 square miles, of the Kherson region in southern Ukraine was under water on Thursday following the destruction of the Kakhovka hydroelectric dam, the regional governor said.
Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said 68% of the flooded territory was on the Russian-occupied left bank of the Dnipro River. The “average level of flooding” in the Kherson region on Thursday morning was 5.61 metres (18.41 ft), he said.
“We’re already working. We will help everyone that has ended up in trouble,” he said in a video statement of the flooding caused by the collapse of the dam, which is about 60 km upstream from Kherson.
Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and Ukraine blame each other for the destruction of the Russian-occupied dam on Tuesday.
“Despite the immense danger and constant Russian shelling, evacuation from zones of flooding is continuing,” Prokudin said.
He said almost 2,000 people had left flooded territory as of Thursday morning.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a video address late on Wednesday that it was impossible to predict how many people would die in Russian-occupied areas due to the flooding.
Ukraine’s fields could become deserts and spark global food crisis in wake of dam destruction, officials warn
Thursday 8 June 2023 08:20 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
The destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam will likely turn Ukraine’s southern fields “into deserts” within the year – sparking a global food security crisis, top Ukrainian officials have warned.
Ukraine’s emergency services are carrying out rescue operations across dozens of towns and villages in the wake of the dam – which is under Russian occupation – unleashing the waters of one of Europe’s largest reservoirs across the war-torn south. The deluge has destroyed homes, drowned animals, severed clean water supplies and forced thousands of people to evacuate.
The sudden emptying of the reservoir has crippled key irrigation systems in three surrounding regions. That has stopped the water supply to nearly 600,000 hectares of agricultural land, and endangered the production of 4 million tonnes of grain and oil crops, Ukraine’s agricultural ministry wrote in a statement.
Our chief international correspondent Bel Trew reports:
Dam destruction may turn Ukraine’s fields ‘into deserts’ and ‘spark food crisis’
South Africa's Ramaphosa discusses African peace mission with Putin
Thursday 8 June 2023 07:53 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa had a telephone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin where he briefed him on the upcoming African leaders peace mission to Russia and Ukraine, the South African presidency said on Thursday.
Putin expressed his desire to receive the peace mission, the presidency statement said.
Dam attack will have ‘same long-term effect’ as Chernobyl, warns NGO
Thursday 8 June 2023 07:11 , Arpan Rai
Environmental experts have warned that the Nova Kakhovka dam collapse will have long-term effects akin to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.
Ukraine says Russia blew up the dam, most likely as an attempt to slow down Kyiv’s military counteroffensive. Russia has denied responsibility.
Maksym Soroka, an environmental safety expert at the Dovkola Network NGO, told FT.com that she compares the massive attack with “the Chernobyl disaster”.
“Yes, the consequences are different, but the long-term effect on the population and the territory is the same,” she said.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said it was impossible to predict how many people would die in Russian-occupied areas due to the flooding, urging a “clear and rapid reaction from the world” to support victims.
Three killed in flooding in Kherson after dam collapse
Thursday 8 June 2023 06:53 , Arpan Rai
At least three people have died in floods in southern Ukraine’s Kherson, local media reports have said in the first such confirmation of casualties from the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam.
Three people drowned in the Kherson region, said Yevhen Ryshchuk, the exiled mayor of Russia-occupied Oleshky, reported The Kyiv Independent.
More than 80 settlements had been affected by the disaster, deputy prime minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said after his visit to the downstream regions. He added that the flooding had released chemicals and infectious bacteria into the water.
Ukraine holds initiative along multiple sectors of war frontline, says UK MoD
Thursday 8 June 2023 06:35 , Arpan Rai
Heavy fighting continues along multiple sectors of the frontline in Ukraine and in most areas, the Ukrainian forces hold the initiative amid a highly complex operational picture, the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) said today.
“Russian forces are likely still being ordered to return to the offensive as soon as possible: Chechen units have led an unsuccessful attempt to take the town of Marivka, near Donetsk city, where the front line has changed little since 2015,” the ministry said in its latest intelligence update.
It added that through yesterday, flood levels continued to rise in the lower Dnipro, following the collapse of the Kakhovka Dam.
However, the water level will likely start to recede today.
Shelling has complicated some attempts to evacuate displaced civilians from inundated areas, the ministry said.
