Russian Drone Strike Injures 8 in Ukraine's Kharkiv Region
RUSSIAN forces launched a massive drone attack overnight that injured several people, including two teenagers, in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region, local officials said on Friday.
Eight people, including two 16-year-olds, were injured in an attack in the village of Vasyliv Khutir, Governor Oleh Syniehubov said.
He gave no further details.
The Ukrainian Air Force said that Russia launched 90 drones and two ballistic missiles overnight against Ukraine that targeted the Kharkiv, Odesa and Donetsk regions.
The Kharkiv region's main city also came under Russian drone attack which targeted a trolleybus depot and injured two people, Mayor Ihor Terekhov said.
'Today, Kharkiv suffered another attack: the enemy fired 8 'shaheds' at one of the depots where our trolleybuses were being repaired and maintained,' he said on the Telegram messaging app.
He added that more than 30 nearby apartment buildings were damaged, while one trolleybus was completely destroyed, and 18 others sustained varying degrees of damage.
Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city situated some 30 km (19 miles) from the country's northeastern border, has been a repeated target of Russian air attacks.
Reuters could not independently verify the reports. There was no immediate comment from Russia.
Both sides deny targeting civilians in the war that Russia started with its full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than three years ago.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
38 minutes ago
- The Star
Pro-EU and MAGA visions clash in Poland's closely fought presidential runoff
WARSAW (Reuters) -Poland holds a knife-edge presidential election on Sunday which will determine whether the largest country in the European Union's eastern wing cements its place in the bloc's mainstream or turns towards MAGA-style nationalism. Turnout holds the key to the contest between Rafal Trzaskowski of ruling centrists Civic Coalition (KO), who holds a narrow lead, and Karol Nawrocki, backed by nationalists Law and Justice (PiS). Parliament holds most power in Poland but the president can veto legislation so the vote is being watched closely in neighbouring Ukraine, as well as in Russia, the U.S. and across the EU. Both candidates agree on the need to spend heavily on defence, as U.S. President Donald Trump is demanding from Europe, and to continue supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russia's three-year-old invasion. But while Trzaskowski sees Ukraine's future membership of NATO as essential for Poland's security, Nawrocki has recently said he would not ratify it as president as this could draw the alliance into a war with Russia. Trzaskowski says strong relations with both Brussels and Washington are essential for Poland's security, but Nawrocki, who met Trump in the White House in May, prioritises relations with the United States. If Nawrocki wins, he is likely to follow a similar path to President Andrzej Duda, a PiS ally who has used his veto power to block the government's efforts to undo the previous PiS administration's judicial reforms which the EU says undermined the independence of the courts. Coming around a year-and-a half since Prime Minister Donald Tusk took office, the vote provides the stiffest test yet of support for his broad coalition government, with Nawrocki presenting the ballot as a referendum on its actions. Voting begins at 7 a.m. (0500 GMT) and is due to end at 9 p.m., with exit polls published soon afterwards. The electoral commission says it hopes final results will be announced on Monday morning or early afternoon. Opinion polls show that the difference between the candidates is within the margin of error. In 2023, huge queues outside polling stations in large cities forced some to stay open later than planned. Analysts said that high participation by younger, liberal, urban Poles was crucial in securing a majority for Tusk. Trzaskowski is hoping that such scenes will be repeated on Sunday. "Encourage everyone, so that as many Poles as possible vote in the presidential election," he told a rally in Wloclawek, central Poland, on Friday. Nawrocki, who draws inspiration from United States President Donald Trump and his Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, told supporters in Biala Podlaska in the country's east that "these elections could be decided by single votes". SOCIAL ISSUES The two candidates also differ on social issues, with Trzaskowski favouring the liberalisation of abortion laws and introduction of civil partnerships for LGBT couples, while Nawrocki says predominantly Catholic Poland should reject such moves. The first round of the election on May 18 saw a surge in support for the anti-establishment far-right, suggesting that the KO-PiS duopoly that has dominated Polish politics for a generation may be starting to fracture. Nevertheless, after a tumultuous campaign in which Nawrocki in particular faced a slew of negative media reports about his alleged past conduct, once again candidates representing the two main parties are facing off in the second round. PiS has traditionally enjoyed high support in small towns and rural areas, especially in the south and east. These areas are typically more socially conservative than larger cities and poorer, creating a sense of exclusion that PiS has tapped into. "They want to build a Poland for the elites," Nawrocki told voters in Biala Podlaska, referring to his opponents from KO. "I am simply one of you, I am a citizen of the Polish state who has travelled a long road to be able to today face a person who is the creation of a political laboratory!" KO, meanwhile, campaigns on a pro-European centrist agenda that appeals to more liberal-minded Poles who mainly live in cities or bigger towns. Trzaskowski took heart from the turnout at a rally in Ciechanow, central Poland. "Looking at this mobilisation, I see how much hope you have - hope in a future in which Poland plays a leading role in the European Union," he said. (Reporting by Alan Charlish; editing by Philippa Fletcher)
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
Merz to meet Trump in US
BERLIN: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will meet with US President Donald Trump on Thursday for talks at the White House, with the Ukraine and Mideast conflicts on the agenda along with rocky trade relations. The talks will mark Merz's first official visit as chancellor since taking office in early May, and be the first time the two leaders have met. The two leaders will discuss relations between the two countries, German government spokesman Stefan Kornelius said Saturday, as well as 'the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, the situation in the Middle East and trade policy'. Trump has rattled Europe with shifts in security and trade policy since returning to the White House, including an array of tariffs on European partners. Speaking at the WDR Europaforum conference last Monday, Merz said the European Union could retaliate with measures against US technology companies or other tariffs if the transatlantic trade conflict escalates. 'We shouldn't react heedlessly and hectically,' Merz said. 'But if we can't do anything else, we would need to use this tool.' But Merz's government, which last week said it would help Kyiv develop long-range missiles, wants to make sure that Washington will not walk away from Ukraine during its war with Russia. Merz and Trump have already had several telephone conversations, with the two agreeing earlier this month to visit each other, without giving dates. With regards to the conflict in Gaza, Merz has sought to heighten the pressure on Israel over its policies, balancing Berlin's support for the Israeli government with criticism of how it is fighting in the territory. 'I no longer understand what the Israeli army is now doing in the Gaza Strip,' he told public broadcaster WDR last week, warning the Israeli government to not do that which 'friends are no longer willing to accept'.
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
Merz to meet Trump in US for talks on Ukraine, trade, Middle East
BERLIN: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will meet with US President Donald Trump on Thursday for talks at the White House, with the Ukraine and Mideast conflicts on the agenda along with rocky trade relations. The talks will mark Merz's first official visit as chancellor since taking office in early May, and be the first time the two leaders have met. The two leaders will discuss relations between the two countries, German government spokesman Stefan Kornelius said Saturday, as well as 'the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, the situation in the Middle East and trade policy'. Trump has rattled Europe with shifts in security and trade policy since returning to the White House, including an array of tariffs on European partners. Speaking at the WDR Europaforum conference last Monday, Merz said the European Union could retaliate with measures against US technology companies or other tariffs if the transatlantic trade conflict escalates. 'We shouldn't react heedlessly and hectically,' Merz said. 'But if we can't do anything else, we would need to use this tool.' But Merz's government, which last week said it would help Kyiv develop long-range missiles, wants to make sure that Washington will not walk away from Ukraine during its war with Russia. Merz and Trump have already had several telephone conversations, with the two agreeing earlier this month to visit each other, without giving dates. With regards to the conflict in Gaza, Merz has sought to heighten the pressure on Israel over its policies, balancing Berlin's support for the Israeli government with criticism of how it is fighting in the territory. 'I no longer understand what the Israeli army is now doing in the Gaza Strip,' he told public broadcaster WDR last week, warning the Israeli government to not do that which 'friends are no longer willing to accept'.
