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Yuliia Taradiuk

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Soldiers of the 115th Brigade fire at drones in the Lyman area, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, on April 24, 2025.

'The front is noisy' — for Ukraine's soldiers, Russia's Victory Day 'ceasefire' is yet another sham

Moscow's self-declared truce which came into force at midnight on May 8 is not being felt on the front lines, Ukrainian soldiers have told the Kyiv Independent, reporting numerous cases of Russian military activity throughout the day. "There is no truce. There is shelling, artillery, drone and FPV (bomb) drops," Petro Kuzyk, a battalion commander at the National Guard, said. The Kremlin announced the measure on April 28, claiming all military actions would halt on May 8 to midnight on May 11 t

'She fed all the birds, dogs, and cats' — 64-year-old animal rescue volunteer and son killed in Russian attack on Kyiv

by Yuliia Taradiuk
Serhii Mandryk was on a call with acquaintances in Canada in the early hours of May 7. An air raid alert had sounded in Kyiv a few hours earlier but he decided to stay at home and go ahead with it rather than head for a shelter. He assured everyone that "everything is fine," but five minutes later he heard the familiar buzz of a Russian attack drone overhead. "Then an explosion," the retired photographer told the Kyiv Independent later that day, standing outside the damaged five-storey apartme

‘This cannot be allowed’ — Israeli opera hires Russian singers, Ukrainian director quits in protest

by Yuliia Taradiuk
A Ukrainian theater director has refused to stage an opera at the Jerusalem Lyric Opera Studio & Festival in Israel after the organizers of the event hired Russian singers against his wishes. Eugene Lavrenchuk explained the reason behind his decision in a post on Facebook on April 28, confirming that he would no longer have a role in the staging of George Handel's opera "Rinaldo," the premiere of which is scheduled for July 21 in Tel Aviv. "Russia is a country that killed millions of people an
President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks at a news conference in Kyiv, Ukraine, on April 17, 2025.

Trump’s latest Crimea comments put Zelensky between a rock and a hard place, again

U.S. President Donald Trump has once again sent ripples of concern around Ukraine, this time by saying he "thinks" President Volodymyr Zelensky is ready to give up occupied Crimea as part of a peace deal to end Russia's full-scale invasion. Trump's comments, if taken at face value, suggest Zelensky is aligned with the U.S., which is reportedly considering a de jure recognition of Russia's control over Crimea as part of a potential peace deal, and de facto control over other occupied territories