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At least five people were killed and 17 wounded on Friday by a Russian missile strike on the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk, the regional governor said. Pavlo Kyrylenko said that seven more people remained under the rubble after S-300 missiles damaged five apartment buildings and five private buildings, among others. Sloviansk is one of two eastern cities coveted by Russian forces, currently bogged down in nearby Bakhmut, as they push ahead with their invasion of Ukraine.

The UKs Ministry of Defence has claimed in its daily intelligence briefing that Ukrainian troops have been forced to make orderly withdrawals from positions they previously held in the highly contested town of Bakhmut, and that the last two days have seen an intense artillery bombardment from Russian forces.

A Russian Su-35 aircraft carried out airstrikes on the settlement of Orihiv in the Zaporizhzhia region, the head of the Ukrainian presidents office said on Friday. In a post on Telegram, Andriy Yermak said private houses and the building of the DYSSH were damaged.

Ukraine will test and use any non-banned weapons to liberate its territory, including Russian-occupied Crimea, the secretary of Ukraines national security and defence council has said.

Rishi Sunak denounced a video purporting to show the beheading of a Ukrainian prisoner of war and said those responsible should be brought to book. Downing Street said the UK prime minister told Ukraines president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in a call on Friday that the footage was abhorrent. Sunak also discussed efforts to accelerate military support to Ukraine.

Ukraines security service has issued a warning to the millions of people in the country celebrating Orthodox Easter this weekend, Sky News reported. Ukrainians are asked to limit the attendance of mass events and avoid lingering unnecessarily in temples during the traditional blessing of the Easter basket.

Ukraine retrieved the bodies of 82 of its soldiers from Russian-controlled territory on Friday, a government ministry said. The ministry of reintegration of the temporarily occupied territories gave no details about how it retrieved the bodies, Reuters reports, but said it was carried out in accordance with the norms of the Geneva convention.

Jack Teixeira has been detained pending a detention hearing that is set for Wednesday 19 April. The member of the US air force national guard has been charged with the unauthorised removal and retention of classified documents and materials. The 21-year-old made his first appearance in a Boston federal court today after the FBI arrested him in Massachusetts on Thursday.

China approved the provision of lethal aid to Russia for its war in Ukraine but wanted any shipments to remain a secret, according to leaked US government documents. A top-secret intelligence summary dated 23 February states that Beijing had approved the incremental provision of weapons to Moscow, which it would disguise as civilian items, according to a report in the Washington Post.

Chinas foreign minister on Friday said the country would not sell weapons to parties involved in the conflict in Ukraine and would regulate the export of items with dual civilian and military use. Qin Gang was speaking at a news conference with his visiting German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock. He reiterated Chinas willingness to help facilitate negotiations to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict and said all parties should remain objective and calm. Baerbock urged China to step up to exert its influence on Russia over Ukraine. She said Germany wanted China to influence Russia to stop its aggression.

Ukrainian forces are finding a growing number of components from China in Russian weapons used in Ukraine, a senior adviser in Zelenskiys office told Reuters on Friday.

The UN secretary general, Antnio Guterres, has written to Russia, Ukraine and Turkey raising concerns about recent impediments to the Black Sea grain export deal. The move comes after the UN said no ships were inspected on Tuesday under the deal as the parties needed more time to reach an agreement on operational priorities.

The US secretary of defence will meet with his counterparts in Sweden and Germany next week, including hosting a Ukraine-related defence meeting with top officials from almost 50 countries, the Pentagon said in a statement on Friday.

Alexei Navalny, Russias most prominent opposition politician, has been grappling with severe stomach pain in jail that could be the result of slow-acting poison, a close ally said on Friday. His situation is critical. We are all very concerned, Ruslan Shaveddinov said in a phone interview.

Russia has put its Pacific naval fleet on high alert as part of a surprise inspection aimed at building its defensive capabilities. The defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, said: The main objective of this inspection is to increase the ability of the armed forces to repel the aggression of a probable enemy from the direction of ocean and sea.

Finlands embassy in Moscow has contacted the Russian foreign ministry after it received a letter containing powder.

The 15 Russian diplomats expelled by Norway this week had sought to recruit sources, conduct so-called signal intelligence and buy advanced technology, the Norwegian security police said on Friday.

Ukraine has barred its national sports teams from competing in Olympic, non-Olympic and Paralympic events that include competitors from Russia and Belarus, the sports ministry said. The decision published in a decree on Friday, criticised by some Ukrainian athletes, comes after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) angered Kyiv by paving the way for Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete as neutrals despite Russias invasion of Ukraine.

Chinas defence minister, Li Shangfu, will visit Russia from 16 to 19 April, and meet Russian military officials.

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Russia-Ukraine war: Zelenskiy and UK prime minister discuss accelerating military support for Ukraine as it happened - The Guardian

KYIV, Ukraine On a riotous Instagram profile featuring pole-dancing, cross-dressing and fierce makeup, a picture of Ivan Honzyk in high heels and stockings next to an image of him in military uniform has gotten the most likes by far.

The junior sergeant's posts are a bold statement in socially conservative Ukraine, where pride parades were often attacked before the war and swaths of the country are occupied by forces loyal to Russia, one of the worlds most conspicuously homophobic states.

But as more members of the LGTBQ community fight on the front lines, the greater visibility of gay and lesbian military personnel appears to be a catalyst for acceptance in wider society, and opinion polls show attitudes are changing.

Honzyk, 27, said his uncompromising self-expression, combined with his work in places like Bakhmut the city in eastern Ukraine that has seen some of the bloodiest battles of the war, while serving as a potent symbol of the countrys defiance is helping to further the cause of LGBTQ rights in the country faster than any pride marches could.

My fellow soldiers are really impressed with what Ive done in Bakhmut, the massive scale of work that I did there, and after that they just dont care about who I sleep with, Honzyk, whose medical unit evacuates wounded soldiers and provides emergency first aid, said in a hip caf in Ukraines capital, Kyiv, while on leave from the front line.

Plenty of other gay and lesbian soldiers have also posted photos and videos of themselves online,some sporting unicorn insignia on their uniform, the mythical creature an ironic riposte to the idea that there are no LGBTQ people in the military.

In the U.S., lesbian, gay and bisexual people were allowed to serve openly in the military only in late 2011. Ukraines armed forces did not have rules preventing the LGTBQ community from serving, but homophobia was rife in the ranks, reflecting a more widespread societal attitude.

But in apparent recognition of their services, Ukrainian lawmakers recently tabled draft legislation that would recognize same-sex relationships and address the lack of inheritance, medical and other rights for the partners of LGTBQ soldiers killed or wounded fighting pro-Moscow forces.

The parades and pride events were not enough, said Honzyk, who has served for four years. The better way to change attitudes is what were doing now. We entered the military and were showing that were worthy. Were not hiding somewhere at the back. Were doing real missions, dangerous missions.

Across the border, President Vladimir Putin has maintained that he launched the invasion in February 2022 to protect Russian-speaking people in Ukraines east, while attempting to frame what he calls the special military operation as a defense of morality against un-Russian liberal values promoted by the West.

Putin has frequently espoused traditional values in his speeches and framed gender-transition surgery and same-sex parenting as morally degenerate Western imports. In December he signed a law expanding Russias restrictions on promoting what it calls gay propaganda, in effective outlawing any public expression of LGBTQ behavior in Russia.

Any action considered an attempt to promote homosexuality in public; online; or in films, books or advertising could incur a heavy fine.

Activists like Edward Reese, 37, a nonbinary communications officer with KyivPride, saidRussias invasion had sharpened Ukraines sense of its own distinct identity and caused many of his countrymen to show more empathy toward their LGBTQ compatriots.

People see that homophobia, transphobia, sexism, racism are Russian values, he said. People understand that they dont want to have anything in common with Russia. So thats why they start to rethink their own homophobia here in Ukraine.

Reese said he had a tough upbringing and was sent for so-called conversion therapy by religious parents who followed the Ukrainian branch of the Russian Orthodox Church.

The church has been outspoken against LGBTQ people, and last year its leader, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, said the sin of gay pride parades justified the war in Ukraine.

But his influence and that of his church has plummeted in recent years in Ukraine. In 2019 the Orthodox Church of Ukraine split from its Russian counterpart.

Kyiv has since accused Russian Orthodox priests of spying for Moscow, charges they deny.

Ukrainian civil society is trying to kick out the Russian Orthodox Church, and they are the most anti-gay people in Ukraine, said LGBTQ activist Maksim Mishkin, 40, speaking at KyivPrides offices.

Today most religious people in Ukraine are either positive or neutral towards us.

Away from the battlefield, LGBTQ groups in Ukraine and abroad have helped evacuate and house people displaced by the fighting and raise money for the military.

Mishkin said he had held fundraisers to send care packages to serving personnel, the appreciative soldiers sending back photos of themselves brandishing coffee mugs and other items featuring LGBTQ-affiliated logos.

Such efforts may have contributed to growing acceptance in Ukraine.

A January survey by the U.S.-based National Democratic Institute, a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization that works to increase the effectiveness of democratic institutions in developing countries, found that 58% of Ukrainian respondents agreed that LGBTQ people should have the same rights as others.

That contrasts with a 2016 survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology that showed 60.4% of respondents viewed LGBTQ people negatively. Last year a similar poll found that percentage had shrunk to 38.2%.

Ukrainian politician Inna Sovsun hopes to harness the positive momentum to pass a draft bill she introduced in parliament last month recognizing same-sex relationships.

When a person in uniform says, Look, I have a loved one. If I am killed in action protecting this country, protecting every single one of you, my partner will not be able to make decisions about where to bury me because there is no legal connection between us, that is something that society cannot say no to, because they are in uniform and risking their lives every single minute for us, she said.

Right now its not just the right thing to do, its also the politically smart thing to do, because the majority of Ukrainians actually support it, she added.

However, she cautioned that the level of support for LGBTQ rights in Ukraine can be overstated.

Outside of the countrys main metropolitan centers, life for LGBTQ people can be difficult, she said, adding that not all LGBTQ military personnel were accepted by their peers and some had been bullied.

For Honzyk, lifes too short to worry about the haters before he heads back to the front line.

If you accept yourself, then the world will accept you too. You need to remember a lot of people are wearing masks, but you shouldnt do that because you have only one life, and any day a missile may kill you, he said.

Dont care about what other people say, because theyll always find somebody to hate.

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As Ukraine's LGBTQ soldiers fight on the front line, acceptance ... - NBC News

An air-raid warning was issued in the east of Ukraine and in Kyiv Oblast, and an air target was spotted in the sky over Kyiv Oblast on the evening of 19 April.

Source: alerts.in.ua; Kyiv Oblast Military Administration on Telegram; Andrii Yermak,

Head of the Presidents Office, on Telegram

Quote from Kyiv Oblast Military Administration: "Residents of Kyiv Oblast! An air target has been detected in the sky. Air defence forces are on alert.

Stay in shelters and observe information silence: do not film or post anything online."

Details: The air-raid warning has also been issued in Sumy, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Luhansk oblasts and Crimea.

The sound of sirens means the threat of missile and air strikes. At this time, it is necessary to take cover.

Even before the air-raid warning was issued, Kyiv residents saw a bright flash in the sky. What exactly it was is currently unknown.

Andrii Yermak, Head of the Presidents Office, reported that the air defence worked in the city of Dnipro and several Shahed drones were shot down.

At the same time, Yermak called on everyone "not to worry about UFOs" because "it is an operation of air defence"; but later he changed this message and asked everyone to wait for information from the Air Force.

At 23:01, the all-clear was given in the city of Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast. Meanwhile, Kharkiv Oblast has been added to the air-alert map.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!

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Air-raid warning issued in part of Ukraine, air target spotted over Kyiv Oblast -

14 April 2023

At least 11 people - including a two-year-old child - have been killed in Russian shelling of Slovyansk in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region.

Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said around 21 others had been wounded in the attack on a residential district of the city.

Gov Kyrylenko added that several more were missing, warning that they could be trapped beneath the rubble.

In a post to social media, President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned what he called a brutal and evil attack.

"The evil state once again demonstrates its essence," he wrote on Telegram. "Just killing people in broad daylight. Ruining, destroying all life."

Officials confirmed that one of those killed was a two-year-old child. A senior adviser to Mr Zelensky said the child had been pulled alive from the rubble, but died in an ambulance while being taken to hospital.

Gov Kyrylenko said five houses and five blocks of flats were hit in the strike, while businesses and shops were also damaged in the blasts, which took place at around 18:00 local time (16:00 BST).

He added that the strike had likely been carried out using repurposed S-300 missiles. The system was originally designed as a surface-to-air defence system, but Russia has increasingly used it to strike ground targets in Ukraine as the war has progressed and Moscow's stores of munitions have been depleted.

Reporters from the AFP news agency witnessed rescue workers digging for survivors at the scene of one of the blasts, as black smoke billowed from another building across the street.

They added that the street, which included a playground, was littered with debris that included torn pages from school books and children's drawings.

Earlier, Andriy Yermak - the head of Mr Zelensky's private office - said seven explosions had been heard in the city, some of which took place near a school.

While Ukraine still controls Slovyansk, the city lies just 27 miles (45km) north-west of Bakhmut, which has been the centre of an extensive Russian assault for several months.

Russia has been trying to capture the city since last summer, and on Friday defence officials in Moscow said mercenaries from the Wagner group were continuing to attack the city.

Russian airborne troops were "providing support to assault squads and halting the enemy's attempts to deliver ammunition to the city and bring in reserves," the statement added.

Ukraine insists that it will continue to defend Bakhmut, which military analysists say has limited strategic value. But Russia is believed to have suffered extremely high casualties trying to capture the city.

An analysis of open sources conducted by the BBC's Russian service established the identities of at least 20,451 Russian soldiers killed since the war began. Some 1,820 of those deaths came in the last two weeks, the analysis found.

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Ukraine war: Civilians killed in Russian strike on Ukraine homes - BBC

The FBI wants to question a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard in connection with the leak of highly classified military documents on the Ukraine war, according to a report. The guardsman has been identified by the New York Times as 21-year-old Jack Teixeira, who reportedly oversaw an online group where about 20 to 30 people shared their love of guns, racist memes and video games.

Ukraines armed forces have said Russian troops are attempting to surround the embattled city of Bakhmut from the north and the south. Every day in Bakhmut area, the enemy makes 40 to 50 offensive and assault attempts, launches more than 500 strikes using the entire range of available weapons, said Brig Gen Oleksiy Hromov, deputy chief of the Ukrainian armed forces general staffs main operational department.

Russias defence ministry claimed its troops had already surrounded Bakhmut, but Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of Russias Wagner mercenary group, said it was too early to say. Prigozhin, whose forces have spearheaded much of the fighting for the embattled city, was responding to a statement by the Russian defence ministry that said Moscows forces were blocking Ukrainian forces from getting in or out of Bakhmut.

Germany has approved a request by Poland to export five old German MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine, officials in Berlin have said.

The Kremlin has denied a report that Vladimir Putin personally approved the arrest of Evan Gershkovich, the Wall Street Journal reporter imprisoned in Russia. According to a Bloomberg report, which cited unnamed sources, the Russian president had personally endorsed Gershkovichs arrest for espionage. Russias deputy foreign minister, Sergei Ryabkov, has suggested Moscow may be willing to discuss a potential prisoner swap for Gershkovich after his trial.

Ukraines foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, has said his country would not change its demand that Russia must withdraw its forces from all of Ukraine including Crimea. Kyiv categorically disagrees with the idea that Crimea is somehow special and should not be returned to Ukraine, as any other part of our territory, Kuleba said in an address to the Black Sea security conference.

Two civilians have been killed and two others were wounded by Russian artillery and aerial attacks in Kherson region in southern Ukraine, the local governor, Oleksandr Prokudin, said.

Norways foreign ministry has said it has decided to expel 15 Russian embassy officials in Oslo. The Russians declared persona non grata are not regular diplomats, but intelligence officers under diplomatic cover. Their activities are a threat to Norwegian interests, Norwegian foreign minister Anniken Huitfeldt said. Russias foreign ministry said it would respond to Norways expulsion of its 15 diplomats.

Swedish prosecutors said they had charged a 52-year-old man with illegally possessing and spreading secret and sensitive information about a large number of military installations. I consider this a gross crime as it concerns a large number of installations that are significant for Swedens ability to defend itself in the case of war, senior prosecutor Lars Hedvall said in a statement.

Serbia never sold weapons or ammunition to Ukraine or Russia, president Aleksandar Vui has insisted, following a leaked secret Pentagon report that said Serbia had pledged to send arms to Kyiv or had sent them already. Vui said he was quite certain that Serbian ammunition would appear on one side or the other in the battlefield in Ukraine, after having been exported to Turkey, Spain or the Czech Republic.

Russias prosecutor general said it had opened an investigation into a video showing Russian soldiers apparently beheading a Ukrainian prisoner of war lying on the ground. It comes a day after President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged international leaders to act, saying the world could not ignore the evil footage, which circulated on Telegram, Twitter and other social media channels, causing revulsion among Ukrainians.

Authorities are working to identify the identity of a Ukrainian prisoner of war whose beheading video emerged on Wednesday, Ukraines deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar said. The Guardian has not independently verified the origins and veracity of the two videos, but Ukrainian authorities are treating them as genuine.

Energoatom, Ukraines nuclear power company, has claimed that a Russian mine exploded near one of the reactors at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant (ZNPP). Europes largest nuclear power station has been occupied by Russian forces since March 2022, with both Ukraine and Russia claiming that the other side has shelled the plant, risking a nuclear incident.

Alexei Navalny, Russias most prominent opposition leader, has a mystery ailment in jail that could be some sort of slow-acting poison, and has lost 8kg in weight in just over two weeks, his spokesperson, Kira Yarmysh, has said. We do not exclude that at this very time Alexei Navalny is being slowly poisoned, being killed slowly so that it attracts less attention, Yarmysh said in a post on Twitter. He is being held in a punishment cell with acute pain without medical help, she said.

Key members of a Ukrainian state orchestra were refused visas to play a series of concerts in the UK this month in a catastrophe that the promoter says cost it more than 100,000 (88,000).

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Russia-Ukraine war live: US air national guardsman suspected of leaking secret documents to be arrested - The Guardian