Viktar Babaryka, who ran against dictator Alexander Lukashenko in the 2020 presidential election and is now a political prisoner, was hospitalized with a punctured lung and signs of physical abuse. Belarusian authorities continue to crack down on political activists, as a Minsk court sentences activist Raman Pratasevich to eight years
President Volodymyr Zelensky visits northwestern Volyn Oblast and checks border with Belarus. Belarus prepares for the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear missile systems as local units complete training in Russia. The number of political prisoners in Belarus reaches 1,500 people, with experts suggesting the actual figure may be much
Editor’s Note: Editorials are articles that present the opinion of the editorial team of the Kyiv Independent. “We went and killed everyone. There were women, men, seniors, and children.” These were the words of Azamat Uldarov, an ex-fighter of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group who personally admitted to shooting
Russian attacks on April 16 killed four people in Sloviansk, Donetsk Oblast, Donetsk Oblast Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko reported.
The movement of Russian troops from Nova Kakhovka on March 23 was a “massive rotation” and not a withdrawal, as previously reported, Ukraine's Southern Command spokesperson Natalia Humeniuk said on national television on March 25.
President Volodymyr Zelensky didn’t receive a proposal to mediate peace between Ukraine and Russia from China, he told the Japan News. Zelensky said that he gave "straight messages" through the diplomatic channels that he wanted to speak with China's leader Xi Jinping but didn't get a response.
Russian attacks have destroyed or damaged at least 978 medical facilities in Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Health Ministry said on March 25, citing a report by the World Bank.
According to a recent survey by the Razumkov Center, 37% of Ukrainians said they had a relative or an acquaintance (either military or civilian) injured or killed since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion on Feb. 24, 2022.
Cooperating with international investigations is crucial so that "(Russian President Vladimir) Putin and others around him know in no uncertain terms that accountability and justice for their crimes are forthcoming," the senators wrote in a letter.
Russia attacked Ukrainian-controlled parts of southern Kherson Oblast 67 times within a 24-hour period, firing 301 shells from heavy artillery and Grad multiple rocket launchers, Kherson Oblast Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said on March 25.
Russia’s downshift in Bakhmut, Donetsk Oblast, results from extreme attrition of the Russian forces and tensions between the Russian Defense Ministry and the state-backed paramilitary Wagner Group, the U.K. Defense Ministry wrote in its March 25 intelligence update.
Editor's note: We asked the patrons of the Kyiv Independent to share the questions they have about the war. Here's what they asked and how we answered. Join our community of patrons to ask a question in the next round. Join our community Support Ukraine's independent journalism in its darkest
The Prosecutor's General’s Office said that the Russian army hit the town of Kostiantynivka, the village of Mykolaivka near Kramatorsk, and Maksymilianivka near the town of Mariinka, damaging houses, residential buildings, cars and civilian infrastructure.
Russian forces fired a total of 335 shells with mortars, MLRS, artillery, tanks, and UAVs over the course of 71 shellings in Kherson Oblast, according to Kherson Regional Military Administration.
Launched in September 2022 by Ukraine's Main Directorate of Intelligence, the hotline helps Russians to surrender themselves or their units to the Ukrainian army.
When evidence of his pro-Kremlin views emerged in 2016, then-President Petro Poroshenko and then-Interior Minister Arsen Avakov were accused of lobbying for his appointment. He was later fired and charged with treason and fled to Russia in the same year.
President Volodymyr Zelensky met with International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan in Kyiv on Feb. 28, the Office of the President reported. During their meeting, Zelensky stressed that the Russian crimes committed in Ukraine must not be overlooked, and those responsible for them must face legal consequences.
Four people were killed and five people were injured on Feb. 28 as a result of artillery strikes by the Russian army, according to the Kherson Oblast administration. Kherson has been continuously subjected to Russian shelling since it was liberated by Ukrainian forces in November 2022.
After months of reports that Russia would expand its aggression against Ukraine, the unthinkable happened early in the morning of Feb. 24, 2022: Russian missiles began raining down on Ukrainian cities, and all at once, millions of people had to act quickly to get themselves and their loved ones to
Editor's Note: The following is the address by President Volodymyr Zelensky published by the President's Office on Feb. 24, 2023, the day that marks one year since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Great People of Great Ukraine! A year ago, on this day, from this very place,
During his surprise visit to Ukraine on Feb. 20, U.S. President Joe Biden pledged an extra $500 million in aid to the country, reports CNN. The assistance package will consist of more military equipment, such as javelins, howitzers, and artillery ammunition.
Russian attacks were reported in Donetsk, Kherson, Kharkiv, Sumy, Mykolaiv, Chernihiv, Zaporizhzhia, and Luhansk oblasts in the east, south, and north of Ukraine.
Editor’s note: We asked the patrons of the Kyiv Independent to share the questions they have about the war. Here’s what they asked, and how we answered. Join our community of patrons to ask a question in the next round. Question: There is a lot of talk about
First it was the tanks, now it’s the fighter jets. As Ukraine braces for another possible major Russian offensive in the upcoming weeks, Western leaders are yet again coming up with a variety of excuses why this time, they cannot justify supplying F-16 and F-35 fighter jets to Ukraine.
The Institute for the Study of War predicts that Russia’s attack on Ukraine from Belarus is more plausible at the end of 2023. “There are no observed indicators that Russian forces in Belarus have the command and control structures necessary for the winter or spring 2023 attack against Ukraine about which Ukrainian issued warnings in late 2022,” the ISW writes.
The village of Nevske, located near the western border of Luhansk Oblast and liberated from Russian occupation in October, was subjected to a massive shelling by Russian forces on Jan. 9, the military administration of Luhansk Oblast said on Telegram.
Nine private houses were damaged and one completely destroyed by the attacks. A school and a local farm were also damaged. No casualties were reported.
Russian forces had allegedly suffocated the victims with plastic bags, beat them with heavy objects, and used electroshocks, trying to elicit “the addresses of Ukrainian patriots, particularly members of the resistance movement.”
Earlier, Pope Francis asked people to spend less on Christmas celebrations, using the savings to help Ukrainians through a very difficult winter.
Ukraine’s Air Defense Forces shot down 10 Shahed drones in the Kyiv Oblast and over the capital, Kyiv Mayor Vitalii Klitschko said in a Telegram post.
The Kyiv Independent is partnering with Saint Javelin, the team behind the iconic symbol of Ukraine’s resistance and a social enterprise that donated over $2 million to Ukraine as it fights Russian aggression. Together, we are launching a merch collection. All the net profits from the sales will be
Russia's war against Ukraine has been a wake-call for the European Union's defense capabilities as weapons deliveries to Ukraine deplete military stockpiles in Europe, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a statement.
