News Feed

3:30 AM

FIFA removes suspension on under-17 Russian athletes competing in international football.

FIFA announced that under-17 athletes from Russia will now be able to participate in international football competitions under neutral colors.

1:59 AM

Germany to provide Ukraine additional defense gear to safeguard grain shipments.

Germany announced it will send additional air defense systems to Ukraine to protect its grain shipments from Russian attacks, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 4.

11:45 PM

Sumy mayor held in custody on corruption charges.

Sumy's mayor, Oleksandr Lysenko, was being held in custody with the possibility of posting an Hr 3,000,000 bail (about $82,000), Ukraine's High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) announced on Facebook on Oct. 4.

11:30 PM

Bild: Scholz blocking delivery of Taurus missiles to Ukraine for the foreseeable future.

Germany will not send long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine due to Chancellor Olaf Scholz's fears that the move will draw Germany into the war, Bild reported on Oct. 4, citing unnamed German and Ukrainian sources as well as Scholz's previous comments.

11:15 PM

War update

Ukraine war latest: Kyiv says special forces conducted operation in occupied Crimea

10:02 PM

UN report officially rejects Russian claim that HIMARS caused Olenivka prison explosions.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) categorically dismissed Russia's claim that the Olenivka prison massacre was caused by a Ukrainian HIMARS rocket, according to a report released on Oct. 4.

9:47 PM

Ukraine develops 'invisibility cloak' to protect soldiers from thermal imagery.

Ukrainian developers are looking to bring science-fiction to life with an "invisibility cloak," a lightweight overcoat able to hide soldiers from Russian thermal imagery, Digital Transformation Minister Mykhailo Fedorov announced on Oct. 4.

9:39 PM

US Central Command: confiscated Iranian munitions sent to Ukraine.

Over a million rounds of 7.62mm ammunition confiscated from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was transferred by the U.S. to Ukraine, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) reported on Oct. 4.

9:05 PM

Culture

Two sisters capture the beauty of Ukraine’s villages before it’s gone

8:12 PM

Ombudsman: Russia to open military camp for youth in occupied Crimea.

Russia will open a new military-oriented camp for youth in Yevpatoria, occupied Crimea, where young people will be indoctrinated with Russian military ideology, Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said on Telegram on Oct. 4.

8:02 PM

Russian ammunition detonates in Kherson field, man seriously injured.

A man has been seriously injured after he came across ammunition left behind by Russian ammunition, which then exploded, Kherson Oblast Military Administration reported on Oct. 4. The 32-year-old man lost a limb, among other injuries, and was taken to hospital for treatment.

7:46 PM

Russian attack on Nikopol injures 1.

Nikopol was targeted by Russian artillery and an attack drone during the day, injuring one civilian, Dnipropetrovsk Governor Serhii Lysak reported on Oct. 4.

6:53 PM

Hungary issues more demands following suspension of OTP Bank from 'international sponsors of war' list.

Hungary "still needs guarantees," that the Hungarian OTP bank will not be reinstated to Ukraine's international sponsors of war list, Foreign Affairs Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Oct. 4.

6:41 PM

Should Ukraine be in NATO?

5:55 PM

Police announces discovery of fraud scheme selling non-existent cars for military.

Ukraine's National Police uncovered a criminal fraud network, in which individuals allegedly sold non-existent vehicles, including to soldiers and volunteers who planned to use them on the front, the service reported on Oct. 4.

5:34 PM

Bloomberg: Azerbaijani President cancels plans to attend peace talks with Armenia.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has canceled plans to attend peace talks on Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 4, citing local media.

4:05 PM

Military intelligence: Special forces land in Crimea in military operation.

Ukrainian special forces landed on Russian-occupied Crimea and conducted a combat operation, Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) announced via a video published online on Oct. 4.

3:42 PM

Ambassador: Ukraine in dialogue with most US House Speaker candidates.

"Many names are already being actively discussed, such as Majority Leader (Steve) Scalise, who is next in the party's hierarchy after the speaker," Markarova wrote on social media.

3:02 PM

SBU detains 3 alleged Russian spies operating in Kharkiv, Zhytomyr oblasts.

At the instruction of their Russian handlers, the suspects allegedly collected information on Ukraine's Armed Forces and the consequences of Russian strikes in Kharkiv and Zhytomyr oblasts.

2:50 PM

Moldova to ban pro-Russian party members from running for election.

The Moldovan parliament is set to approve amendments to the election code that will ban members of the pro-Russian Shor party from participating in elections, the parliament's speaker Igor Grosu said on Oct. 4.

2:46 PM

Poll: Most Americans favor Ukraine aid, but partisan divide widens.

Most Americans continue to support for Ukraine's military (63%) and continued economic assistance (61%), which is slightly lower than a year ago.

1:51 PM

Ukraine completes investigation into killing of EuroMaidan protesters, indicts Yanukovych for murder.

The investigation into the killing of EuroMaidan protesters in Kyiv in February 2014 has been completed and former President Viktor Yanukovych has been formally charged with a range of crimes including murder, the General Prosecutor's Office announced on Oct. 4.

1:38 PM

Media: SBU drones hit Russian S-400 air defense system near Belgorod.

The strike was reportedly carried out at night. In videos on Russian Telegram channels, allegedly taken in Belgorod and published in the early hours of Oct. 4, the sounds of explosions can be heard over the city.

12:39 PM

Venice bus crash kills 21 people, including at least 4 Ukrainians.

A bus crash in Italy on Tuesday killed at least four Ukrainians, local media reported on Oct. 4. In total, 21 people on board were killed, the local authorities said.

11:27 AM

Politico: EU to announce Ukraine membership talks in December.

According to Politico, the EU's executive arm will publish its "progress report" in November and will make it "very hard for member states not to say let's open negotiations" for Ukraine.

MORE NEWS

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Ukrainian forces push forward near Melitopol

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Russian sources: Igor Girkin arrested

by Martin Fornusek and The Kyiv Independent news desk July 21, 2023 2:11 PM 2 min read

Russian warlord Igor Girkin, who led the Russian proxies in Ukraine's occupied Donetsk Oblast, in Donetsk, Donetsk Oblast, in July 2015. (Alexander Khudoteply/AFP/Getty Images)

This audio is created with AI assistance

Igor "Strelkov" Girkin, a Russian war criminal and a former commander of Russian proxy forces in occupied Donetsk Oblast, has been arrested, as reported on July 21 by his Telegram channel and Russian media.

"Today, at about 11:30 a.m., representatives of the investigative committee came to us," says the latest message on Girkin's channel, signed as "Miroslava Reginskaya, the wife of Igor Strelkov."

The Telegram post said the investigators took Girkin by the arms and took him in an unknown direction.

"I managed to learn from friends that my husband was charged under article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (extremism)."

The Russian news agency RBC also reported that Girkin was arrested by law enforcement officers, citing its sources in the police and Girkin's lawyer.

According to RBC's preliminary information, Girkin was detained "at the request of a former employee of the Wagner Group."

The Kyiv Independent could not verify the claims.

Girkin, also known as Igor Strelkov, is a former Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) agent and a key figure in the start of Russia's war against Ukraine when he helped seize Sloviansk, Donetsk Oblast, in 2014.

Girkin has also been found guilty of participating in the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 over Ukraine, which killed 298 people.

During the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, he has been often critical of the Russian military's conduct in the war. Girkin co-founded the Club of Angry Patriots, a hardline nationalist movement pushing for more extreme measures to achieve victory over Ukraine.

According to Russian media, Girkin has been arrested already on Aug. 14, 2022, in Crimea, while trying to reach the front line to fight the Ukrainian army.

Authors: Martin Fornusekand The Kyiv Independent news desk

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