If you are catching up on the latest developments in the Ukraine-Russia war, here’s what you need to know.
Missile strikes in Odesa: Three Iskander missiles launched from the Russian-annexed peninsula of Crimea had struck a settlement in the Odesa region, said Maksym Marchenko, the head of the region’s military administration, adding that there were casualties.
Ukraine recaptured Bucha: Ukraine has recaptured the town of Bucha near the capital of Kyiv Thursday, according to Bucha’s Mayor Anatolii Fedoruk.
Mariupol evacuations: Buses carrying civilians evacuated from the besieged city of Mariupol left the coastal city of Berdyansk and arrived in the Ukrainian government-held city of Zaporizhzhia late Friday night local time. Around 2,000 civilians were on the buses and yet, more than 100,000 civilians still remain trapped in Mariupol, according to Ukrainian authorities.
Blaze at a fuel depot: A huge fire has broken out at a fuel depot in Belgorod, a Russian city near the Ukrainian border, and Russia says an air strike from Ukrainian helicopters is to blame. CNN is so far unable to verify this claim and the Ukrainian defense ministry told CNN it has no information about the incident. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Friday that the purported strike could have a potential negative impact on negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow.
Heavy shelling continues: Ukrainian officials have continued to report heavy shelling in eastern Ukraine on Friday, particularly in the Luhansk region of the Donbas amid an apparent shift by Russia to redirect military efforts to the region. NATO’s chief has warned Russian forces are repositioning rather than withdrawing, while Ukrainian and US officials say say Russians may be regrouping in Belarus.
