"If the Russians are using this level of specialists in urban combat, they are probably facing some difficulties," Ivan Petrychak, spokesperson for the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade, said.
Previously, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk accused the Russian intelligence services of orchestrating a May 2024 arson attack on the Marywilska shopping centre in Warsaw.
"Perhaps in some areas, the intensity decreased slightly to create an image of compliance with their own announcement. But in reality, (Russia) continued attacks every day, using all available weapons — including aircraft to drop guided bombs on Ukraine," Andrii Demchenko, spokesperson for Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service, said.
Beijing supports all efforts toward achieving peace in Ukraine, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on May 12 when asked about Kyiv and Europe's proposal for a 30-day truce.
"I invited His Holiness to make an apostolic visit to Ukraine. Such a visit would bring real hope to all believers and to all our people," Zelensky said.
Presidential Office chief Andriy Yermak voiced doubt about leading negotiations with anyone from Russia except President Vladimir Putin, implying only the Russian leader can make real decisions.
This includes at least seven people injured in drone attacks overnight on May 12, a date from which Kyiv and its allies put forward a demand for a 30-day unconditional truce, a step that Moscow continues to reject.
"When European unity becomes inconvenient, disinformation goes so far as to make a simple tissue look like drugs," the Elysee Palace reacted to a fake story pushed by Russia.
The comments came after Trump urged Ukraine to agree to direct negotiations with Russia, which has invited Kyiv to peace talks in Istanbul on May 15, without first agreeing to halt military operations.
A Russian drone hit a civilian freight train in Donetsk Oblast on May 12 and injured its driver, Ukrainian Railways said amid Kyiv's calls for a ceasefire.
Moscow and Hanoi agreed to negotiate and sign agreements to construct nuclear power plants in Vietnam, the two countries said in a joint statement on May 11.
Anti-regime armed groups advancing in Syria's strategically important province of Homs, the gateway to the capital Damascus, reach the inner parts of the city center in Homs, Syria on Dec. 6, 2024. (Izettin Kasim/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad boarded a plane out of Damascus on Dec. 8 as rebel forces swept into the capital, two senior army officers told Reuters.
The Syrian government has not officially confirmed the claims. Assad's destination is unknown, the officials told Reuters.
Rebel forces reportedly entered Damascus in the early hours of Dec. 8, taking over the state TV and radio headquarters to broadcast the end of Assad's regime. Opposition fighters also said they had freed all prisoners at the nearby Sednaya Prison near the capital.
Assad's fall comes less than two weeks after a coalition of rebel forces launched a surprise offensive in late November, seizing major cities across the country. Before the sudden advance, the civil war in Syria had been largely dormant for almost a decade.
Opposition forces reportedly encircled Damascus throughout the day on Dec. 7, pushing through the southern communities of Maadamiyah, Jaramana, and Daraya. Rebels on Dec. 7 also captured the strategic city of Homs, cutting Assad off from the Mediterranean coast and key Russian military bases.
Assad's office said on Dec. 7 that the president had not fled Damascus, and had ordered the army to reinforce the capital.
As rebel forces blazed through the country, Russia, one of Assad's key allies, promised to continue aiding the Syrian government.
Moscow is doing everything in its power "not to allow terrorists to prevail," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed on Dec. 7. Despite these assurances, Lavrov said he was "not in the business of guessing what is going to happen" in Syria.
Russia has targeted Syrian cities with multiple airstrikes in the last week in an effort to push back rebel forces, but more aggressive military support for Assad may be limited by Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine.
U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Dec. 7 that the speed and scope of the rebel offensive was a result of the current weakness of Assad's allies. Russia is unable to deliver military aid to the Syrian government while its forces stage their own grinding advance in eastern Ukraine, he said.
Satellite imagery suggests that Russia has already withdrawn all vessels from the Tartus Naval Base, Moscow's only naval base in the Mediterranean.
Russia has provided military aid to Syria since 2015, committing warplanes, tanks, artillery, and ground troops in an effort to prop up Assad's regime. This military intervention was a major reason Assad was able to capture Aleppo, the nation's second-largest city, in 2016 after hears of fighting.
Human rights groups have documented numerous war crimes committed by Russian forces in Syria.
Oleg Sukhov
