Latest news with #GenevaPeaceProtocols
Gulf Today
6 days ago
- Politics
- Gulf Today
Russia launches war's largest air attack on Ukraine, kills at least 12 people
Russian forces launched a barrage of 367 drones and missiles at Ukrainian cities overnight, including the capital Kyiv, in the largest aerial attack of the war so far, killing at least 12 people and injuring dozens more, officials said. The dead included three children in the northern region of Zhytomyr, local officials there said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on the United States, which has taken a softer public line on Russia and its leader, Vladimir Putin, since President Donald Trump took office, to speak out. "The silence of America, the silence of others in the world only encourages Putin," he wrote on Telegram. "Every such terrorist Russian strike is reason enough for new sanctions against Russia." A resident inspects cars destroyed in a residential area during a Russian drone strike, in Odesa, Ukraine. Reuters It was the largest attack of the war in terms of weapons fired, although other strikes have killed more people. Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said 12 people had been killed and 60 more wounded. Earlier death tolls given separately by regional authorities and rescuers had put the number of dead at 13. An explosion of a drone lights up the sky over the city during a Russian drone strike. Reuters "This was a combined, ruthless strike aimed at civilians. The enemy once again showed that its goal is fear and death," he wrote on Telegram. The assault comes as Ukraine and Russia prepared to conduct the third and final day of a prisoner swap in which both sides will exchange a total of 1000 people each. US Special Envoy to Ukraine Keith Kellogg said on Sunday the attack was "a clear violation" of the 1977 Geneva Peace Protocols and called for an immediate ceasefire. CEASEFIRE EFFORTS Ukraine and its European allies have sought to push Moscow into signing a 30-day ceasefire as a first step to negotiating an end to the three-year war. In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, private houses are seen ruined after Russian drones attack in Kyiv region. AP Their efforts suffered a blow earlier this week when Trump declined to place further sanctions on Moscow for not agreeing to an immediate pause in fighting, as Kyiv had wanted. Ukraine's air force said Russia had launched 298 drones and 69 missiles in its overnight assault, although it said it was able to down 266 drones and 45 missiles. Damage extended to a string of regional centres, including Ukraine's second-largest city, Kharkiv, as well as Mykolaiv in the south and Ternopil in the west. In Kyiv, Tymur Tkachenko, head of the city's military administration, said 11 people were injured in drone strikes. No deaths were reported in the capital, although four were killed in the region around the city, according to officials. This was the second large aerial attack in two days. Reuters
Egypt Independent
6 days ago
- Politics
- Egypt Independent
US ‘silence' encouraging Putin, says Zelensky, after Russia launches record air assault
CNN — Russia launched its largest aerial assault of its three-year war on Ukraine overnight, targeting the capital and other regions with missiles and drones for a second night in a row, prompting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to rebuke the US for its 'silence.' At least 12 people were killed in the attacks across Ukraine, including children, officials said. Dozens more people were injured. Among those killed were three children from the same family in the Zhytomyr region – west of Kyiv – according to Ukraine's internal affairs minister Ihor Klymenko. He said their parents were hospitalized where the mother remains in a serious condition. The children's school expressed its condolences on Facebook. 'We are in pain. The whole school family… We bow our heads in sorrow,' it said. Russia has been intensifying its aerial bombardment of Ukraine as international pressure mounts on Putin to accept a ceasefire proposal. 'Each such terrorist attack by Russia is a sufficient reason for new sanctions against Russia. Russia is dragging out this war and continues to kill every day,' Zelensky said in a post on Telegram Sunday morning. 'The world may go on vacation, but the war continues, despite weekends and weekdays. This cannot be ignored. America's silence, and the silence of others in the world, only encourages Putin,' he continued. Later on Sunday, US President Donald Trump expressed frustration with Putin, saying, 'We're in the middle of talking, and he's shooting rockets into Kyiv and other cities.' Speaking to reporters on his way back to Washington, D.C., Trump said: 'He's killing a lot of people, and I don't know what the hell happened to Putin. I've known him a long time. Always gotten along with him, but he's sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don't like it at all.' But Trump also turned his criticism toward Zelensky, saying in a post on Truth Social that the Ukrainian president was 'doing his Country no favors by talking the way he does. Everything out of his mouth causes problems, I don't like it, and it better stop.' Trump's Special Envoy for Ukraine and Russia, Keith Kellogg, called Russia's overnight attacks a 'clear violation of the 1977 Geneva Peace Protocols designed to protect innocents.' The assault overnight into Sunday came despite the largest prisoner swap of the war taking place, a rare moment of cooperation in a brutal conflict that shows little sign of ending. Ukraine's Air Force said 367 aerial attack weapons – 69 missiles and 298 drones – were launched across 22 locations in Ukraine overnight into Sunday. It added 47 of those missiles and 266 drones were intercepted. Russia's previous record-breaking aerial attack on Ukraine was just last weekend when Russia launched 273 drones in one night. Firefighters try to put out a fire following a Russian attack in Kyiv on Sunday. Ukrainian Emergency Service/AP A municipal worker cleans an apartment building in Kyiv that was damaged in a Russian drone strike on Sunday. Thomas Peter/Reuters 'A difficult Sunday morning in Ukraine after a sleepless night. The most massive Russian air attack in many weeks lasted all night,' Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said in a post on social media platform X. In the capital Kyiv, air raid sirens blared for hours and residents were warned to stay in shelters in the early hours of Sunday as officials said the city faced a second night in a row of drone and missiles attacks. Civilian buildings in multiple districts were damaged as Russia mounted an attack using drones and rockets, authorities said. The overnight assault came a day after another wave of Russian attacks, which killed at least 13 people. Prisoner swap Over 600 Russian and Ukrainian prisoners were exchanged Sunday, the final phase of the 1,000-for-1,000 prisoner exchange the two sides had agreed to – the only significant outcome of the meeting between Kyiv and Moscow in Istanbul last week. Russia's defense ministry said 303 Russian servicemen were exchanged for the same number of Ukrainian prisoners of war. Videos posted to social media by Zelensky and other officials show the hundreds of released Ukrainian men with shaved heads calling their loved ones on the phone whilst draped in Ukrainian flags. One video posted by the country's ombudsman shows three men enjoying chocolate. Over 600 prisoners were released on Saturday and almost 800 people were released on Friday during the initial phases of the swap. A Ukrainian serviceman hugs his wife after returning from captivity during a prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine Sunday, May 25, 2025 Efrem Lukatsky/AP Zelensky said Sunday he was 'grateful to the team that worked around the clock to successfully implement this exchange.' The Istanbul meeting was initially proposed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in response to a ceasefire-or-sanctions ultimatum given to Moscow by Kyiv's European allies – which many saw as a clear attempt by the Kremlin leader to distract and delay. Kyiv had hoped those talks would alleviate its casualties, but since then Russia has stepped up its bombardment. 'Without really strong pressure on the Russian leadership, this brutality cannot be stopped,' Zelensky said on Sunday, calling on the US and Europe to impose fresh sanctions. US President Donald Trump has said he would not join in any new sanctions on Russia because he thought 'there's a chance' of progress, but remarked that could change. He has also pointed to potential economic incentives if the war concludes, but the latest Russian assault will renew the sense among Kyiv and its allies that trade with the US is not high on the list of Putin's priorities. Meanwhile, Russia said that it also was attacked by Ukrainian drones on Sunday. Russia's defense ministry said it intercepted or destroyed around 100 attack drones. Most of those destroyed were over Russia's central and southern regions, with 13 over the Moscow and Tver regions, the ministry said. The defense ministry a day earlier claimed it had destroyed 94 Ukrainian UAVs over Russian territory, mostly over the Belgorod and Bryansk regions. Some UAVs were also shot down over the Kursk, Lipetsk, Voronezh and Tula regions too, it added. The governor of the Tula region, Dmitry Miliaev, said Saturday three people were injured, including two who were hospitalized. This story has been updated.
Epoch Times
7 days ago
- Politics
- Epoch Times
Trump Rebukes Putin Over Recent Russian Attacks on Ukraine
President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he was surprised by Russian leader Vladimir Putin's escalation of attacks on Ukraine amid ongoing cease-fire talks, expressing his discontent with Putin's actions. 'I'm not happy with what Putin is doing. He's killing a lot of people. And I don't know what the hell happened to Putin,' Trump 'We're in the middle of talking, and he's shooting rockets into Kyiv and other cities. I don't like it at all.' Russia The airstrike occurred just hours before the third and final prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine, with both nations having exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war in an effort to scale down the conflict. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of deliberately prolonging the war and called on the United States and European countries to impose further sanctions as a means to pressure Russia. Related Stories 5/25/2025 5/24/2025 'Each such terrorist Russian strike is a sufficient reason for new sanctions against Russia,' Zelenskyy Trump also voiced his discontent with Putin's actions on the Truth Social platform, warning that any actions to conquer the entirety of Ukraine would adversely affect Russia. 'I've always said that he wants ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it, and maybe that's proving to be right, but if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia,' he Trump also said that Zelenskyy was not doing any favors for his country 'by talking the way he does' and that he should stop. U.S. envoy Keith Kellogg also condemned the Russian attacks as 'shameful' and called for an immediate cease-fire in Ukraine. 'The indiscriminate killing of women and children at night in their homes is a clear violation of the 1977 Geneva Peace Protocols designed to protect innocents,' Kellogg stated in a social media The prisoners swap completes the third part of a deal signed last month, under which each side agreed to release 1,000 prisoners of war captured during the three-year war. Zelenskyy Russia's Defense Ministry also The first two phases of the deal involved the exchange of 307 prisoners from each side on May 24 and 390 prisoners from each side on May 23. The Trump administration has been pushing for a cease-fire deal aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. The Kremlin Zelenskyy has Jacob Burg and Reuters contributed to this report.
Daily Maverick
7 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
Russia launches war's largest air attack on Ukraine, kills at least 12 people
By Max Hunder The dead included three children in the northern region of Zhytomyr, local officials there said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on the United States, which has taken a softer public line on Russia and its leader, Vladimir Putin, since President Donald Trump took office, to speak out. 'The silence of America, the silence of others in the world only encourages Putin,' he wrote on Telegram. 'Every such terrorist Russian strike is reason enough for new sanctions against Russia.' Trump later responded in terms critical of Putin. 'I'm not happy with what Putin's doing. He's killing a lot of people,' Trump told reporters in New Jersey on Sunday just before boarding his plane for a return to the White House from his Bedminister golf club. 'I don't know what the hell happened to Putin. I've known him a long time. Always gotten along with him. But he's sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don't like it at all. We're in the middle of talking and he's shooting rockets into Kyiv and other cities,' Trump said. Asked if he was considering more sanctions on Russia, Trump said, 'Absolutely.' Upon returning to Washington, Trump posted more comments on social media, saying of Putin, 'He has gone absolutely CRAZY!' Trump also criticised Zelenskiy, posting that the Ukrainian leader 'is doing his Country no favors by talking the way he does. Everything out of his mouth causes problems, I don't like it, and it better stop.' The Russian attack was the largest of the war in terms of weapons fired, although other strikes have killed more people. Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said 12 people had been killed and 60 more wounded. Earlier death tolls given separately by regional authorities and rescuers had put the number of dead at 13. 'This was a combined, ruthless strike aimed at civilians. The enemy once again showed that its goal is fear and death,' he wrote on Telegram. The assault comes as Ukraine and Russia prepared to conduct the third and final day of a prisoner swap in which both sides will exchange a total of 1000 people each. U.S. Special Envoy to Ukraine Keith Kellogg said on Sunday the attack was 'a clear violation' of the 1977 Geneva Peace Protocols and called for an immediate ceasefire. CEASEFIRE EFFORTS Ukraine and its European allies have sought to push Moscow into signing a 30-day ceasefire as a first step to negotiating an end to the three-year war. Their efforts suffered a blow earlier this week when Trump declined to place further sanctions on Moscow for not agreeing to an immediate pause in fighting, as Kyiv had wanted. Ukraine's air force said Russia had launched 298 drones and 69 missiles in its overnight assault, although it said it was able to down 266 drones and 45 missiles. Damage extended to a string of regional centres, including Ukraine's second-largest city, Kharkiv, as well as Mykolaiv in the south and Ternopil in the west. In Kyiv, Tymur Tkachenko, head of the city's military administration, said 11 people were injured in drone strikes. No deaths were reported in the capital, although four were killed in the region around the city, according to officials. This was the second large aerial attack in two days. On Friday evening, Russia launched dozens of drones and ballistic missiles at Kyiv in waves that continued through the night. In northeastern Ukraine, Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said early on Sunday that drones hit three city districts and injured three people. Blasts shattered windows in high-rise apartment blocks. Drone strikes killed a 77-year-old man and injured five people in the southern city of Mykolaiv, the regional governor said. He published a picture of a residential apartment block with a large hole from an explosion and rubble scattered over the ground. In the western region of Khmelnytskyi, many hundreds of kilometres away from the frontlines of fighting, four people were killed and five others wounded, according to the governor. 'Without pressure, nothing will change and Russia and its allies will only build up forces for such murders in Western countries,' the Ukrainian president's chief of staff Andriy Yermak wrote on Telegram. 'Moscow will fight as long as it has the ability to produce weapons.' Russia's Defence Ministry reported that its air defence units had intercepted or destroyed 95 Ukrainian drones over a four-hour period. The Mayor of Moscow, Sergei Sobyanin, said 12 Ukrainian drones had been intercepted on their way to the capital.
Otago Daily Times
7 days ago
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Trump not happy with 'crazy' Putin
United States President Donald Trump has expressed deep unhappiness at Russia's weekend bombing of Ukraine, saying of Russian President Vladimir Putin, "I'm not happy with Putin." "I don't know what's wrong with him. What the hell happened to him? Right? He's killing a lot of people. I'm not happy about that," Trump told reporters at the airport in Morristown, New Jersey, as he prepared to return to Washington. Trump's comments were a reaction to a Russian barrage of 367 drones and missiles at Ukrainian cities overnight on Sunday, including the capital Kyiv, in the largest aerial attack of the war so far, killing at least 12 people and injuring dozens more. The dead included three children in the northern region of Zhytomyr, local officials there said. Trump has been trying to get both sides to agree to a ceasefire in the three-year-old war in Ukraine and he spoke for more than two hours with Putin last week. "Always gotten along with him, but he's sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don't like it at all," Trump said. Asked if he was considering more sanctions on Russia, the President said: "Absolutely." Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the US, which has taken a softer public line on Russia and Putin, since Trump took office in January this year for a second term, to speak out. "The silence of America, the silence of others in the world only encourages Putin," he wrote on Telegram. "Every such terrorist Russian strike is reason enough for new sanctions against Russia." Upon returning to Washington, Trump posted more comments on social media, saying of Putin: "He has gone absolutely CRAZY!" Trump also criticised Zelenskyy, posting that the Ukrainian leader "is doing his Country no favours by talking the way he does. Everything out of his mouth causes problems, I don't like it, and it better stop." The Russian attack was the largest of the war in terms of weapons fired, although other strikes have killed more people. Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said 12 people had been killed and 60 more wounded. Earlier death tolls given separately by regional authorities and rescuers had put the number of dead at 13. "This was a combined, ruthless strike aimed at civilians. The enemy once again showed that its goal is fear and death," he wrote on Telegram. The assault comes as Ukraine and Russia prepared to conduct the third and final day of a prisoner swap in which both sides will exchange a total of 1000 people each. US Special Envoy to Ukraine Keith Kellogg said on Sunday the attack was "a clear violation" of the 1977 Geneva Peace Protocols and called for an immediate ceasefire. CEASEFIRE EFFORTS Ukraine and its European allies have sought to push Moscow into signing a 30-day ceasefire as a first step to negotiating an end to the three-year war. Their efforts suffered a blow last week when Trump declined to place further sanctions on Moscow for not agreeing to an immediate pause in fighting, as Kyiv had wanted. Ukraine's air force said Russia had launched 298 drones and 69 missiles in its overnight assault, although it said it was able to down 266 drones and 45 missiles. Damage extended to a string of regional centres, including Ukraine's second-largest city, Kharkiv, as well as Mykolaiv in the south and Ternopil in the west. In Kyiv, Tymur Tkachenko, head of the city's military administration, said 11 people were injured in drone strikes. No deaths were reported in the capital, although four were killed in the region around the city, according to officials. This was the second large aerial attack in two days. On Friday evening, Russia launched dozens of drones and ballistic missiles at Kyiv in waves that continued through the night. In northeastern Ukraine, Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said early on Sunday that drones hit three city districts and injured three people. Blasts shattered windows in high-rise apartment blocks. Drone strikes killed a 77-year-old man and injured five people in the southern city of Mykolaiv, the regional governor said. He published a picture of a residential apartment block with a large hole from an explosion and rubble scattered over the ground. In the western region of Khmelnytskyi, many hundreds of kilometres away from the frontlines of fighting, four people were killed and five others wounded, according to the governor. "Without pressure, nothing will change and Russia and its allies will only build up forces for such murders in Western countries," the Ukrainian president's chief of staff Andriy Yermak wrote on Telegram. "Moscow will fight as long as it has the ability to produce weapons." Russia's Defence Ministry reported that its air defence units had intercepted or destroyed 95 Ukrainian drones over a four-hour period. The Mayor of Moscow, Sergei Sobyanin, said 12 Ukrainian drones had been intercepted on their way to the capital.
