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7:39 PM

Foreign Ministry: Belarus to showcase abducted Ukrainian children at meeting with foreign diplomats.

Belarus is planning to organize a visit for foreign representatives at locations where Ukrainian children taken from regions temporarily occupied by Russia are kept, the Foreign Ministry said on Sept. 30.

7:13 PM

Medvedev threatens Russia will seize more Ukrainian regions.

In a Telegram message commemorating one year since Russia's illegal annexation of four Ukrainian regions, Medvedev said "there will be more new regions within Russia."

6:27 PM

Media: Nearly 100,000 people have left Nagorno-Karabakh for Armenia.

As of 8:00 p.m. on Sept. 29, 98,625 people have left Nagorno-Karabakh for Armenia, a spokesperson for Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Nazeli Baghdasaryan, said.

5:50 PM

Borrell makes unannounced visit to Odesa.

"Odesa is a beautiful historic city. It should be in the headlines for its vibrant culture (and) spirit," Borrell wrote on Twitter. "Instead, it marks the news as a frequent target of Putin's war."

5:18 PM

Media: Russian soldier working with intelligence defects to Ukrainian forces.

The soldier, Daniil Alfyorov, had been working with Ukrainian intelligence since July and had successfully convinced 11 other Russian soldiers to defect to the Ukrainian side, Andriy Yusov, a HUR spokesman, said.

5:15 PM

Zelensky meets with Slovak defense minister.

According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, he and Slovak Defense Minister Martin Sklenar discussed cooperation with Slovakia regarding the Ukrainian military's needs, the situation at the front line, and de-mining.

4:15 PM

Special forces extract two soldiers who were in occupied land since start of invasion.

The Navy's intelligence arm was several weeks ago informed about the two Ukrainians who had been in occupied territory since the full-scale invasion began in February 2022.

3:03 PM

Kuleba: African countries interested in hosting Ukrainian defense plants on their soil.

Plagued by weapon and ammo shortages, Ukraine is not able to export anything defense-related at this time but is looking to return to being one of the world's leading armorers. The production of Ukrainian weapons on African soil is seen as an alternative to currently-impossible exports, Kuleba said, calling it a "new trend."

2:05 PM

Zaporizhzhia missile strike injures five, damages infrastructure.

Five people were injured on the outskirts of Zaporizhzhia as the result of a Russian missile attack that also damaged five homes and a unit of infrastructure on Sept. 30, according to the regional military administration.

1:17 PM

Bulgaria bans Ukrainian sunflower imports until November.

Bulgaria has banned the import of Ukrainian sunflowers until the end of November after a meeting between both countries' agriculture ministers, Bulgaria's Agriculture Ministry said on Sept. 29.

12:25 PM

Dozens of international firms join Kyiv's new defense industry alliance.

Among other capabilities, the alliance will eventually pave the way for Ukraine to localize production of licensed foreign weapons on Ukrainian soil, said Andriy Yermak, head of the president's office. During his recent visit to Washington, Zelensky and U.S. President Joe Biden agreed to have their teams hammer out a roadmap for this kind of localization.

11:21 AM

Romania investigates another possible airspace violation by Russia.

The ministry reported that, as Russia was attacking Ukraine's ports on the Danube river, air alert sirens were activated in the nearby Romanian cities of Tulcea and Galati as radar systems detected an unsanctioned object heading towards the latter in Romania's airspace.

11:07 AM

General Staff: Russia has lost 278,130 troops since Feb 24, 2022.

This number includes 470 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

10:09 AM

Military: Ukraine shoots down 30 drones from overnight attack.

Most of the drones targeted Vinnytsia Oblast, where 20 of them were destroyed, the military said. Some are believed to have gotten through, striking infrastructure and causing a fire in Vinnytsia Oblast's Kalynivka community.

7:17 AM

General CQ Brown succeeds Mark Milley as US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs.

The chairman is the highest-ranking member of the U.S. military. Milley served in the role for four years before retiring on Sept. 29.

6:19 AM

ISW: Russia's FSB supports law expanding digital surveillance.

Amendments to a proposed bill in the Russian State Duma would allow law enforcement agencies direct access to personal data from Russian internet, banking, and telecom companies.

5:25 AM

Ukrainian refugee children in EU face 'perpetual uncertainty'.

Children who fled Ukraine for EU countries following Russia's all-out war struggle with language barriers, disrupted education, and psychological trauma, the EU's Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) reported on Sept. 29.

4:20 AM

Bryansk Oblast governor claims Ukrainian attack disrupted local power supply.

Governor Alexander Bogomaz claimed that Ukrainian forces attacked the village of Pogar and disrupted the local power supply in the early hours of Sept. 30.

3:53 AM

Russian forces attack 9 communities in Sumy Oblast.

The communities of Esman, Shalyhyne, Mykolaiv, Putyvl, Velyka Pysarivka, Khotin, Krasnopillia, and Yunakivka came under fire.

3:29 AM

Putin declares holiday commemorating occupation of Ukrainian regions.

Russian dictator Vladimir Putin signed a decree marking Sept. 30 as a "reunification day" commemorating Russia's illegal annexation of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts.

2:34 AM

Russian attack damages infrastructure in Vinnytsia Oblast.

On attack on Vinnystia Oblast the night of Sept. 30 damaged an infrastructure facility in the region, Oblast Governor Serhii Borzov reported via Telegram.

2:17 AM

Armenia sues Azerbaijan in International Court of Justice.

The request calls on the court to uphold the rights protected under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD).

1:32 AM

Front-line photographer Volodymyr Myroniuk killed in action.

Myroniuk, aged 59, was an independent photographer who documented Ukrainian soldiers at the front.

12:37 AM

New round of Russian conscription will include Ukraine's occupied territories.

The fall 2023 conscription will include the illegally annexed areas of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia oblasts.

10:59 PM

Ukraine removes companies from 'international sponsor of war' list as part of military aid negotiations.

The NACP hopes that this will "lead to Hungary’s unblocking of €500 million of vital EU military aid for the Ukrainian people, and will also eliminate the possibility of Greece blocking the future EU sanctions package aimed at reducing Russia’s ability to continue the war."

MORE NEWS

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Ukrainian fencer disqualified after refusing to shake hands with Russian opponent

by Elsa Court and The Kyiv Independent news desk July 27, 2023 3:48 PM 3 min read

Olga Kharlan of Ukraine during Fencing Women's Sabre Individual at day eight of the European Games 2023 at Tauron Arena on June 27, 2023 in Krakow, Poland. (Photo Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images)

This audio is created with AI assistance

Ukrainian fencer Olga Kharlan has been disqualified from the World Fencing Championship after refusing to shake hands with her defeated Russian opponent on July 27.

Kharlan won the match in Milan against Russian fencer Anna Smirnova, who was competing under a neutral flag.

As the match finished, the two athletes took off their masks and Smirnova put out her hand. In response, Kharlan put out her sword in front of her in an apparent offer to touch sabres instead.

The two exchanged words, which were not picked up by microphones. Smirnova then refused to leave piste for 10 minutes after the match ended.

Kharlan's following match, against Yoana Ilieva from Bulgaria, did not go ahead, and Ilieva moved on to the final.

Kharlan is the winner of 13 World Cup gold medals, four World Championship gold medals, and two Olympic bronzes.

The fencer lives in Italy but grew up in Mykolaiv. Her home town is a frequent target of Russian attacks and primarily suffers from Shahed-type drones and Kalibr cruise missiles.

A strike on a residential building in Mykolaiv on July 20 injured 19 people, including five children

Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russian and Belarusian participation in international sports has been a point of contention for Ukraine. Many Russian athletes are members of military clubs such as the Central Sports Club of the Army (CSKA), which remains part of Russia's Defense Ministry.

In April 2023, Ukraine banned all official delegations of national sports teams from participating in international competitions where athletes from Russia or Belarus are present.

However, on July 26, Sports Minister Vadym Gutzeit announced that Ukrainian athletes will be able to compete alongside Belarusians and Russians if they maintain a neutral status.

The ministry's order still prohibits Ukrainian athletes from participating in competitions "where athletes representing the Russian Federation and/or the Republic of Belarus compete under their national flags."

If there is any sign of breach of the neutral status, the order states that the national team has to terminate its participation in an event.

In March 2023, the International Olympic Committee recommended that Russian and Belarusian athletes be again allowed to participate in international competitions, provided they do so as "individual neutral athletes."

On July 26, the IOC announced it has not invited Russia and Belarus to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

Over 30 countries have urged the IOC to continue its ban on Russia and Belarus from competing in international sporting events, including the 2024 Olympic Games.

The International Fencing Federation allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete from mid-April 2023.

Authors: Elsa Courtand The Kyiv Independent news desk

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