Ukrainian Su-27 pilot dies during combat mission
The Air Force did not specify what mission the pilot was carrying out when the death occurred. The circumstances of the pilot's death are being investigated.
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Kateryna Hodunova
News EditorKateryna Hodunova is a News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a sports journalist in several Ukrainian outlets and was the deputy chief editor at Suspilne Sport. Kateryna covered the 2022 Olympics in Beijing and was included in the Special Mentions list at the AIPS Sport Media Awards. She holds a bachelor's degree in political journalism from Taras Shevchenko University and a master's degree in political science from the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
Articles
Ukrainian drones destroy 70% of fuel tanks at Russia's Temryuk Seaport, General Staff says
The Dec. 5 attack sparked a large fire at the Temryuk Seaport, a facility that handles various types of cargo, including liquefied natural gas used to supply the Russian military.
Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces commander hits back at Russia's international arrest warrant
Russia has accused Robert "Madyar" Brovdi in absentia of organizing an alleged terrorist attack in Russia's Kursk Oblast.
Ukraine war latest: Russia attacks Kryvyi Rih, injuring at least 5 people, including 3-year-old girl
Hello, this is Kateryna Hodunova reporting from Kyiv on day 1,379 of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Today's top story so far:
Russian missile struck the city of Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on Dec. 3, injuring at least five people, including a child, Ukraine's Emergency Service reported.
The 3-year-old girl and a 28-year-old victim will receive outpatient treatment, while an 87-year-old woman was hospitalized in a condition of moderate severity, according to Governor Vladysla
Zelensky's chief of staff Yermak resigns amid Ukraine's biggest corruption scandal
Andriy Yermak, head of the President's Office, submitted his resignation following searches by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) at his premises earlier on Nov. 28, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced.
Ukraine war latest: Unmanned Systems Forces blow up $60m worth of Russian air defense systems in 3 days
Hello, this is Kateryna Hodunova reporting from Kyiv on day 1,374 of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Today's top story:
Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces took out $60 million worth of Russian air defense systems over the course of three days, it claimed in a social media post on Nov. 28.
"The Buk-M1, Buk-M2, and Tor-M2 air defense systems were hit. The total cost of these weapons is estimated at $60 million," it said.
"These complexes are key elements of the enemy's air defense syst
Ukraine strikes Saratov oil refinery, airfield in Russian-occupied Crimea, Ukraine's General Staff says
Residents in several Russian cities and in occupied Crimea reported hearing explosions overnight on Nov. 28.
More Ukrainians get news from TikTok and Telegram, fueling propaganda and privacy concerns
Amid the ongoing war, Ukrainians' growing reliance on social networks for real-time news reflects a search for immediacy — yet this shift exposes them to new forms of disinformation.
The trend toward getting news from social networks is global, but in Ukraine it has taken on a distinctly wartime character. For many, these platforms are a lifeline, offering instant updates on Russian attacks or troop movements.
Yet the same qualities that make them indispensable also make them dangerous.
Disin
'If you give your life, you live forever' — North Korean soldiers in Ukraine encouraged to use grenades to avoid capture, media reports
The North Korean military is highlighting the "heroic services" of soldiers who blew themselves up in Ukraine rather than be taken prisoner, a Daily NK source said.
Outrage, disgust, but little surprise — Ukraine reacts to bombshell Witkoff leak
An explosive leak implicating top U.S. negotiator Steve Witkoff in shady dealings with Russia has sparked shock and astonishment not only in the U.S. but also in Ukraine.
According to conversations leaked by Bloomberg on Nov. 25, U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy Witkoff advised a Russian official on how to sway the White House.
Ukrainian lawmakers, soldiers, and experts told the Kyiv Independent that the leak proves Witkoff could be a tool of the Kremlin rather than a neutral mediat
Ukraine reportedly destroys 2 Russian aircraft, including rare A-60 laser platform
Ukrainian forces destroyed a Russian Il-76 heavy transport aircraft as well as an experimental A-60 airborne laser complex, according to Robert "Madyar" Brovdi, commander of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces, on Nov. 25.
Ukraine war latest: Russian forces attempt to push Ukrainian army from eastern bank of Oskil River in Kharkiv Oblast, military says
Hello, this is Kateryna Hodunova reporting from Kyiv on day 1,370 of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Today's top story:
Russian forces are attempting to push Ukrainian troops from the eastern bank of the Oskil River in the Kupiansk sector of the front line in Kharkiv Oblast, Viktor Tregubov, head of communications for Ukraine's Joint Forces, said on national television on Nov. 24.
While the situation in the settlements of Kupiansk and Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi remains unchanged, Russian troo
'Capitulation and betrayal' — Ukraine rages at controversial US peace plan, piles pressure on Zelensky
Amid mounting pressure from the White House, Kyiv is now grappling with a U.S. 28-point peace plan that many in the country view as a "capitulation."
Ukrainian activists, lawmakers, soldiers and veterans warn that the proposal could strengthen Russia's position, leading to further conflict rather than resolution — and not just on the front lines, but on the streets of Ukraine.
Volodymyr Ariev, a lawmaker with the opposition European Solidarity party, said that the leaked plan appears to be "a
US threatening to cut intelligence, weapons to pressure Ukraine into new peace deal, Reuters reports
Washington is pushing Kyiv to approve the framework of the deal by Nov. 27, coinciding with the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, one of the sources told Reuters.
Ukraine's northern fortress city of Chernihiv braces for a worst-case scenario winter
CHERNIHIV OBLAST - As evening settles over Chernihiv in northern Ukraine, the city plunges into darkness, broken only by the noise of generators. Their constant hum is now so common that it sometimes obscures even the sound of Russian drones moving across the night sky.
But Nataliia Svyrydenko, who has lived in Chernihiv's Bobrovytsia district for 26 years, can still identify the sound instantly.
"It is impossible to describe what you feel inside. You do not know whether it will pass over or c
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