Summary of the day
It has just turned 6pm in Ukraine and Russia. Here are the key events you might have missed from the day:
A Ukrainian drone attack targeting the Morozovsk airbase in Russia has killed or injured 20 members of airfield personnel and destroyed six Russian warplanes, as well as badly damaging eight others, according to officials in Kyiv. Russian defence officials, however, have claimed they intercepted more than 40 Ukrainian drones and only a power substation was damaged in the barrage. The Guardian could not independently verify either side’s claims.
A Russian airstrike on Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia has killed two people and injured six others, according to local governor. A series of blasts had been reported in the city of Zaporizhzhia on Friday. Reuters reported earlier in the day that Ukraine’s air force shot down all 13 drones used in Russia’s overnight attack on the southern regions of Zaporizhzhia, Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk, though nothing had been said about the missiles.
Russian investigators claimed to have found pro-Ukraine data on the phone of one of the Moscow terror attack suspects, despite evidence that an offshoot of the Islamic State (IS) was responsible. Russia’s investigative committee said that data from one of the suspects’ phones showed that on the morning of 24 February this year – the second anniversary of Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine – he had trawled for photographs of the Crocus City Hall and sent it to others. It said the suspect “had confirmed all this in his statements” and also said they had found photos showing men in camouflage holding the Ukrainian flag in front of destroyed buildings.
Human rights experts however have warned that any statements or confessions from the suspects should be met with scepticism given that the men appeared to have been repeatedly tortured, according to gruesome videos and photographs circulating of their interrogations.A Russian governor was hospitalised after being stabbed, a spokesperson has said. Andrey Chibis, governor of far northern Murmansk was stabbed in the stomach on Thursday evening outside a cultural centre in the town of Apatity, where he had been holding a meeting. Chibis said in a video posted on Telegram from his hospital bed early on Friday that he had “come around” after surgery and that doctors had saved his life. Chibis is a member of the United Russia ruling party and has governed Murmansk region since 2019. He was sanctioned by the EU in 2022 over his support for the Kremlin’s Ukraine offensive.
Russian forces have taken control of a settlement named Vodyane in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, according to a Russia’s defence ministry statement. The ministry provided no further ddetails of the settlement.
Authorities in Russia’s eastern city of Khabarovsk declared a state of emergency in an area where a “radiation source” was found, according to Russian news agency TASS reports. It said elevated radiation levels were detected near a power pylon, approximately 2.5km (1.5 miles) from residential buildings. It also said radiation levels would be monitored for the next two days and the source of the radiation would be investigated, but nobody has been injured or exposed to radiation so far.
The Kremlin called French President Emmanuel Macron’s assertions that Russia plans to disrupt the Olympics “absolutely unfounded.” Macron said on Thursday that he had “no doubt” that Russia would target the Paris Olympics this summer. When asked about Russia’s threat to the games by a reporter, Macron said, “I have no doubt whatsoever, including in terms of information.”
The Doctors Without Borders (MSF) humanitarian organisation said that a Russian missile strike on the Ukrainian-held town of Pokrovsk had “completely destroyed” its office in the town. In a post on X, MSF said it “condemns this attack on the office, which supports its emergency medical humanitarian assistance”.
Ukrainian military drones attacked the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, but no serious damage was detected, Russian state media has reported, citing the plant’s press service. The Guardian could not independently verify the alleged incident. In the past, both sides have accused one other of shelling the plant, none of whose six reactors are operating.
Japan announced new sanctions against Russia. Japan’s trade ministry announced the decision to ban exports of 164 goods to Russia, including automobile engine oil and optical equipment. They are also expected to ban imports of Russian nonindustrial diamonds.
The Ukrainian military denied that Russian forces had entered the suburbs of Chasiv Yar, a town in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, but said there was fighting ongoing in the area. “The situation there is very difficult, the fighting continues, but they are not there,” Andriy Zadubinnyi, spokesman for Ukraine’s eastern command told Reuters. Russia’s RIA news agency cited an adviser to the Russian-appointed regional head earlier as saying that Russian forces were in the suburb of Chasiv Yar.
Russian air strike on Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia kills two people, injures six others, governor says
A Russian air attack on Ukraine’s southern city of Zaporizhzhia killed two people and injured six more, the regional governor said on Friday afternoon.
A nine-year-old boy and his mother were among the injured, Ivan Fedorov added on Telegram. An image posted by the governor showed a cafe with shattered windows.
A series of blasts was reported in the city of Zaporizhzhia on Friday.
Doctors without Borders says Russian missile strike 'completely destroyed' its office
The Doctors Without Borders (MSF) humanitarian organisation said on Friday that a Russian missile strike on the Ukrainian-held town of Pokrovsk had “completely destroyed” its office in the town.
In a post on X, MSF said it “condemns this attack on the office, which supports its emergency medical humanitarian assistance”.
“This attack on our office is far from being an isolated incident. The destruction of civilian infrastructure has been a hallmark of this war for a long time,” says Vincenzo Porpiglia, emergency coordinator for MSF in Ukraine.”
Ukrainian police said five civilians were wounded in the strike.
🔴 BREAKING:
— MSF International (@MSF) April 5, 2024
Today, on 5 April at around 3 am, our office in Pokrovsk, in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, was bombed and completely destroyed. All our staff are safe. Five civilians who were close to the office were injured... 🧵#WarInUkraine pic.twitter.com/hkFlP4ekWB
Updated
Arsenal defender Oleksandr Zichenko says he would leave the Premier League to fight in Ukraine if he were called up by his country.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy this week signed into law a measure lowering the country’s army mobilisation age from 27 to 25, the country’s parliament said on its website.
Professional footballer Zinchenko, who has won 60 caps for Ukraine, told BBC’s Newsnight programme he would answer a call-up.
“I think it’s a clear answer. I would go (to fight)“, he said.
He added that former school friends were involved in the conflict.
“It’s tough to understand that just recently we’ve been in the same school, we were playing in the playground or on the football pitch, and now they have to defend our country,” he said.
The 27-year-old former Manchester City player told the BBC he had donated about £1m ($1.25m) to help people in his country since Russia’s invasion in 2022.
“I know maybe some people might think that it’s much easier … for me being here (in London) rather than being there (in Ukraine),” he said. “I really hope that this war will end soon.”
Updated
Ukrainian military drones attack nuclear plant, no serious damage detected, Moscow says
Ukrainian military drones have attacked Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, but no serious damage has been detected, Russian state media reports, citing plant’s press service.
The Guardian could not independently verify the alleged incident.
In the past, both sides have accused one other of shelling the plant, none of whose six reactors are operating.
Updated
Russian forces take control of village in eastern Ukraine, Moscow says
Russian forces have taken control of a settlement named Vodyane in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, Russia’s defence ministry said in a statement on Friday.
The ministry provided no further details.
More updates to come …
Russia has summoned the South Korean ambassador to protest over sanctions by Seoul against Russian individuals and legal entities, the Russian foreign ministry said on Friday.
South Korea has imposed sanctions against two Russian vessels which it says were carrying military cargo to North Korea. Seoul said on Tuesday that it had also sanctioned two Russian organisations and two Russian citizens linked to Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile programmes.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday that Russia considers South Korea’s decision as an unfriendly move and will respond in due course.
Russia is very likely to have been behind disturbances affecting GPS navigation in the Baltic region, Germany’s defence ministry said today.
“The persistent disruptions to the global navigation satellite system are very likely of Russian origin and are based on disruptions in the electromagnetic spectrum, including those originating in the Kaliningrad Oblast,” a spokesperson for the ministry told Reuters.
Three civilians have been injured in Kherson, Ukrinform reported.
“The Russian troops attacked Beryslav again using a drone. Three people sustained injuries from the explosives that were dropped,” Kherson’s regional military administration said.
A former city councillor and member of the Massachusetts national guard who is wanted in the US on child sexual abuse image charges has fled the country and joined the Russian army fighting in Ukraine.
Wilmer Puello-Mota, 28, former city councillor of Holyoke, Massachusetts, went missing on 7 January, two days before he was scheduled to appear in court in Rhode Island in possession of child sexual abuse images and obstruction of justice charges.
This week, Puello-Mota resurfaced at an enlistment centre in the Russian region of Khanty-Mansiysk in western Siberia, where he was captured on film signing a military contract.
Read the rest of the story here:
Russian regional governor in hospital after stabbing attack
The governor of Russia’s far northern Murmansk region was in hospital on Friday after being stabbed by a man, his spokesperson said.
Andrey Chibis, 45, was stabbed in the stomach on Thursday evening outside a cultural centre in the town of Apatity, where he had been holding a meeting.
“Now he is in post-operative condition. It is too early to make predictions on his recovery and how long it will take,” Liliya Sechkina told Russian state TV.
Chibis said in a video posted on Telegram from his hospital bed early on Friday that he had “come around” after surgery and that doctors had saved his life.
The attacker was detained and is expected to undergo “psychiatric examinations”, investigators said. They added, “During interrogation, the man explained that he had committed the attack because he felt dislike for the governor, although he did not know him personally,.”
Chibis is a member of the United Russia ruling party and has governed Murmansk region since 2019. He was sanctioned by the EU in 2022 over his support for the Kremlin’s Ukraine offensive.
Updated
20 members of Morozovsk airfield personnel killed or injured, Kyiv says
Ukrainian officials claimed on Friday that the drone strike targeting the Morozovsk airbase in Russia had killed or injured 20 members of personnel.
The officials, speaking on anonymity to the AP because they were not authorised to publicly discuss the operation, had also said the attack destroyed at least six military aircrafts and badly damaged eight others.
However, Russian defence officials claimed they intercepted more than 40 Ukrainian drones and only a power substation was damaged.
The Guardian could not independently verify either side’s claims.
Kremlin calls potential Russian threat to Paris Olympics "completely unfounded"
The Kremlin has called French President Emmanuel Macron’s assertions that Russia plans to disrupt the Olympics “absolutely unfounded.”
Macron said on Thursday that he had “no doubt” that Russia would target the Paris Olympics this summer.
When asked about Russia’s threat to the games by a reporter, Macron said, “I have no doubt whatsoever, including in terms of information.”
Updated
Emergency declared in Russia's Khabarovsk after radiation detected
Authorities in Russia’s eastern city of Khabarovsk have declared a state of emergency in an area where a “radiation source” was found, Russian news agency TASS reported on Friday.
It said elevated radiation levels were detected near a power pylon, approximately 2.5km (1.5 miles) from residential buildings.
It also said radiation levels would be monitored for the next two days and the source of the radiation would be investigated, but nobody has been injured or exposed to radiation so far.
TASS quoted the local branch of Russia’s consumer safety watchdog as saying that “there is no threat to the health of citizens”.
Japan announces new sanctions against Russia
Japan’s ministry of economy, trade and industry announced on their website on Friday the decision to ban exports of 164 goods to Russia, including automobile engine oil and optical equipment.
The cabinet approved the export ban for items that could strengthen Russia’s industrial base, as part of sanctions against Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine. The ban is expected to take effect on 17 April.
The ministry also said that it has revised a ministerial notice to ban imports of Russian nonindustrial diamonds, which are used in jewellery. The import ban will be implemented on 10 May.
“We will make every effort to implement the ban on exports to and imports from Russia in cooperation with the international community,” trade minister Ken Saito told a press conference.
A Ukrainian intelligence source has described the operation targeting the Morozovsk air base as an important one.
The source did not say how the attack was conducted but that six Russian warplanes were destroyed, and eight more were damaged, in a joint operation by the SBU security service and the military.
The Ukrainian source told Reuters on Friday that the Morozovsk air base was used by Russian tactical bombers that Moscow’s air force uses to fire guided bombs at the Ukrainian military and frontline towns and cities.
Russian Sukhoi Su-34 military aircraft are pictured at Morozovsk Airbase, Russia March 27, 2021. Photograph: Maxar Technologies/Reuters
The Guardian could not independently verify these claims, or Moscow’s claims that the drones were intercepted.
Ukraine has significantly stepped up its drone attacks on targets in Russia in recent weeks. On Tuesday, a Ukrainian drone struck the primary unit of the third largest Russian oil refinery in the Tatarstan region, more than 1,100 km (690 miles) from Ukraine; their deepest attack into Russia since the war began in February 2022.
Dialogue with Russia must remain open despite its attack on Ukraine, Italy’s defence minister said on Friday.
“Although the Russian Federation has invaded a sovereign country, and for this reason Italy and France always support and will support Ukraine, it is important (...) that channels of confrontation and dialogue are also kept open,” Italy’s Guido Crosetto said in a statement.
Earlier this week, French Armed Forces Minister Sebastien Lecornu had a phone conversation with Russia’s Sergei Shoigu, during the course of which France condemned Russia’s “war of aggression” in Ukraine.
France later denied Russian claims that it expressed willingness to hold dialogue on Ukraine or discuss possible peace negotiations when the two countries’ defence ministers spoke on Wednesday.
Crosetto, who spoke to Lecornu on Thursday, added that “tough and critical” communication, is essential to achieve the goal of stopping the Russian attacks and to be able to “create the conditions for a just peace”.
Drone attack destroyed six Russian warplanes and damaged eight others, Kyiv says
We have had more updates come through on the drone attack into Russia’s Rostov region.
An Ukrainian intelligence source told Reuters on Friday that the attack destroyed six Russian warplanes and damaged eight others, at a military airfield near the town of Morozovsk.
The Guardian could not independently verify the claim.
Russia’s RIA news agency cited the defence ministry earlier on Friday as saying the country’s air defences downed more than 40 drones overnight.
Ukraine has fired more than 40 drones into Russia, Moscow says
Moscow defence officials say Ukraine have fired more than 40 drones into Russia’s bordering Rostov region in what appears to be one of its biggest aerial attacks in the war, which is extending into its third year.
Russia’s defence ministry said 44 drones were “intercepted and destroyed” Friday in the Morozovsky district, more than 62 miles (100km) from the border.
Officials say the attack damaged a power substation. Russian media reported that there is a military airfield near the town of Morozovsk, but it is unclear whether the airfield was the target of the attack.
Ukrainian officials rarely comment on such strikes and provided no immediate response. The Guardian has not been able to independently verify the claims.
Last week, Moscow launched a a mass barrage of 99 drones and missiles against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, hitting regions across the country.
Updated
Russia says pro-Ukraine data found on Moscow attack suspect's phone
Russian investigators claim to have found pro-Ukraine data on the phone of one of the Moscow attack suspects, in the latest sign the Kremlin is intent on blaming Kyiv for the deadly Crocus City Hall shooting despite the Islamic State’s claim of responsibility.
Russian investigators on Friday said one of the attackers behind last month’s massacre at a Moscow concert hall - claimed by the Islamic State (IS) - had pro-Ukrainian content on his phone.
Ukraine and the West have accused Moscow of trying to exploit the tragedy by implying, without providing evidence, that Kyiv was behind the terror attack, the most deadly in Russia for two decades.
Islamic State (IS) has repeatedly claimed responsibility for the attack, its deadliest on European soil and the deadliest by any group in Russia since the 2004 Beslan school siege.
Gunmen in camouflage stormed the Crocus City Hall venue on the outskirts of Moscow before setting the building on fire. More than a dozen suspects have been arrested including the four assailants, who are all from the Central Asian nation of Tajikistan.
Hours after the attacks, Russian media and state officials began to lay the groundwork for blaming Ukraine for the terrorist attack which killed over 140 people, despite evidence that Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), an Afghan offshoot of the terrorist group, was responsible.
Russian investigators said Friday that data from one of the suspects’ phones showed that on the morning of February 24 this year - the second anniversary of Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine - he had trawled for photographs of the Crocus City Hall and sent it to others.
It said the suspect “had confirmed all this in his statements”.
Human rights experts however have warned that any statements or confessions from the suspects should be met with scepticism given that the men appeared to have been repeatedly tortured, according to gruesome videos and photographs circulating of their interrogations.
Russia’s investigative committee also said it had found photos on the same phone showing men in camouflage holding the Ukrainian flag in front of destroyed buildings.
“This data may indicate a link between the attack” and the conflict in Ukraine, it said.
The United States said it had publicly and privately warned Russia in early March that extremists were planning an attack on a concert hall in Moscow.
Unnamed US intelligence officials told American media outlets after the massacre that they specifically had told Moscow it was the Crocus City Hall that IS was planning to attack.
Reuters last week reported that Iran, a close ally of Russia, also tipped off the Kremlin about the possibility of a major “terrorist operation” on its soil ahead of the concert hall massacre.
Russia rejected western warnings. Just three days before the attack, president Vladimir Putin accused Washington of “blackmail” and trying to “intimidate” Russians.
The Ukrainian military denied on Friday that Russian forces had entered the suburbs of Chasiv Yar, a town in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, but said there was fighting ongoing in the area.
“The situation there is very difficult, the fighting continues, but they are not there,” Andriy Zadubinnyi, spokesman for Ukraine’s eastern command told Reuters.
Russia’s RIA news agency cited an adviser to the Russian-appointed regional head earlier as saying that Russian forces were in the suburb of Chasiv Yar.
Ukraine military shoot down 13 Russian drones over southern regions
Good morning, the time has just passed 10am in Kyiv and Moscow.
Reuters has reported that Ukraine’s air force shot down all 13 drones used in Russia’s overnight attack on the southern regions of Zaporizhzhia, Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk.
One of the attacks targeted energy infrastructure in the Odesa region but air defences repelled the attacks, Ukraine’s military said.
Local officials also reported explosions in an attack in the eastern city of Kharkiv, a regular target of Russian attacks, late on Thursday. The region’s governor, Oleh Syniehubov, said there were no casualties reported as of Friday morning.
Russia has stepped up attacks on Ukrainian grid infrastructure in recent weeks, aiming to disrupt the country’s power and energy network
