Russian forces shot and killed 10 people standing for bread in the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv, the US embassy in Kyiv said. Ukrainian officials said the attack took place at 10am local time (8am GMT). Russia’s defence ministry denied the report, claiming no Russian soldiers were in Chernihiv.
Russian forces bombed a theatre where civilians were sheltering in the encircled Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, the city council said. Mariupol council posted an image of the city’s theatre showing heavy damage sustained in today’s attack and said casualty numbers were being confirmed.
The bodies of five people, including three children, were recovered today during searches of residential buildings damaged by shelling in the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv, Ukraine’s emergencies service said. The bodies were found in the ruins of a dormitory building, an online statement reported.
The UN’s international court of justice (ICJ) has ordered Russia to stop its invasion, saying it had not seen any evidence to support the Kremlin’s justification for the war. Only the Russian and Chinese judges on the court voted against the order.
A report by the Financial Times about a proposed 15-point peace plan between Moscow and Kyiv only shows “the requesting position of the Russian side”, Ukrainian negotiator Mykhailo Podolyak said. The FT had reported a “tentative” peace plan that included a ceasefire and Russian withdrawal if Kyiv declares neutrality and accepts limits on its armed forces.
The US president, Joe Biden, announced an extra $800m in security assistance from the US to Ukraine, to buy more weapons and military equipment, as part of a much larger package of aid. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on US Congress to provide more weapons to help his country fight off Russian airstrikes and for further sanctions against Russia, including the withdrawal of all US businesses.
Russian president Vladimir Putin said the west “would not succeed” in what he called its attempt to achieve global dominance and dismember Russia. In a televised speech to government ministers, Putin went further than before in acknowledging the pain that western sanctions were inflicting on the Russian economy, but insisted the country could withstand the blow.
There have been 43 attacks on Ukrainian healthcare facilities, infrastructure and workers since the beginning of the invasion, said WHO chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Two health workers had been killed and at least 8 injured in the attacks, the WHO said.
Russian forces have released the mayor of the Ukrainian city of Melitopol, an adviser to the Ukrainian president said. Ukraine’s state services for communications shared a video showing Zelenskiy speaking with Mayor Ivan Fedorov following his release.
The prima ballerina Olga Smirnova, one of Russia’s biggest dance stars, has quit the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow after denouncing the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Earlier this month, Smirnova posted on Telegram, saying that she was against the war “with all the fibres of my soul”.
