This blog is closing now, thanks for following the day’s developments. All our Ukraine news is here
Here is a summary of events today:
- Ukraine and Russia have blamed each other for renewed shelling on Saturday night of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, the Zaporizhzhia.
- Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy called for new international sanctions on Moscow for “nuclear terror”, including sanctions to be imposed on the Russian nuclear industry and nuclear fuel.
- Ukraine’s state nuclear power company, Energoatom, said a worker was wounded when Russian forces reportedly shelled the plant, the biggest in Europe, on Saturday evening.
- The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency has raised grave concerns about shelling at the plant.
- Four ships carrying Ukrainian foodstuffs sailed from Ukrainian Black Sea ports on Sunday.
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Pope Francis welcomed the departure of the ships carrying grain from Ukrainian Black Sea ports saying this could be a model for dialogue to bring an end to the war in Ukraine.
- The Ukrainian military said Russian shelling was recorded in dozens of towns along the eastern and southern front lines.
- Ukraine is investigating almost 26,000 suspected war crime cases committed since Russia’s invasion in February and has charged 135 people, its chief war crimes prosecutor told Reuters.
- Human rights group Amnesty International apologised for the “distress and anger” caused by a report that accused Ukraine of endangering civilians.
- UK defence secretary Ben Wallace welcomed a decision by Sweden to join countries contributing to the UK-led programme to train Ukrainian personnel in the UK.
- The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, landed in South Africa on Sunday on a three-nation visit with a reported aim of countering Russian influence on the continent.
- Hollywood actor Jessica Chastain visited Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Kyiv today. On Telegram Zelenskiy thanked her for meeting with him adding, such visits are “extremely valuable” for helping the world “hear, know and understand” what is happening in Ukraine.
Hollywood actor Jessica Chastain has met with Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
Writing on Telegram, the president said:
American actress Jessica Chastain is in Ukraine today.
For us, such visits of famous people are extremely valuable.
Thanks to this, the world will hear, know and understand the truth about what is happening in our country even more.
Thanks for the support!
Chastain also visited the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital, according to Ukrainian public broadcaster, Suspilne News.
American actress @jes_chastain arrived in #Kyiv and visited the "Okhmatdyt" children's hospital. She plans to visit #Irpin, and also meet with President @ZelenskyyUa and the head of the @APUkraine Andrii Yermak.#Ukraine#StandWithUkraine pic.twitter.com/3dvJgoI5Yj
— SUSPILNE NEWS 📰 (@suspilne_news) August 7, 2022
Here are some images coming over the wires today.
The Zaporizhzhia power plant in Ukraine is a focus of attention in the war after Kyiv accused Russia of shelling the plant again and damaging radiation sensors.
The plant, in Russian-controlled territory, was also shelled on Friday. Moscow blames Ukrainian forces for the strikes.
Reuters has put together some facts about Europe’s largest nuclear facility.
- Zaporizhzhia is the largest of Ukraine’s four nuclear power plants, which together provide about half the country’s electricity.
- Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February was the first time war has broken out in a country with such a large and established nuclear power programme, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says.
- Zaporizhzhia’s six units each have a net capacity of 950 Megawatts electric, or a total of 5.7 Gigawatts electric, according to an IAEA database. The first unit was connected to the grid in 1984, and the last in 1995.
- The plant is of strategic importance to Russia because it is only about 200 km (125 miles) from Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014. The plant was captured by Russian forces in the opening stage of the war but it is still run by its Ukrainian technicians.
- Shells hit a high-voltage power line at the facility on Friday, prompting its operators to disconnect a reactor despite no radioactive leak being detected.
Ukrainian emergency services have released drone footage of a burning building in Mykolaiv, after what authorities say was a Russian strike.
Mykolaiv borders the mostly Russian-occupied Kherson region. A medical facility in the southern port city was recently damaged in a Russian attack, which Mykolaiv’s mayor described as ‘terrorism’
Summary
Key developments today so far.
- Ukraine and Russia blamed each other on Sunday for renewed shelling on Saturday night of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, the Zaporizhzhia.
- Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy called for new international sanctions on Moscow for “nuclear terror”, including sanctions to be imposed on the Russian nuclear industry and nuclear fuel.
- Moscow blames Ukrainian forces for the strikes.Russian occupation authorities in the city of Energodar where the plant is located said that overnight, “the Ukrainian army carried out an attack with a cluster bomb fired from an Uragan rocket launcher.”
- Ukraine’s state nuclear power company, Energoatom, said a worker was wounded when Russian forces reportedly shelled the plant, the biggest in Europe, on Saturday evening.
- The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency has raised grave concerns about shelling at the plant, which is in Russian-controlled territory and was also shelled on Friday.
- Four ships carrying Ukrainian foodstuffs sailed from Ukrainian Black Sea ports on Sunday as part of a deal to unblock the country’s sea exports. The four bulk carriers were loaded with more than 160,000 tonnes of corn and other foodstuffs.The resumption of grain exports is being overseen by a Joint Coordination Centre (JCC) in Istanbul where Russian, Ukrainian, Turkish and UN personnel are working.
- Pope Francis welcomed the departure from Ukrainian Black Sea ports of the ships carrying grain saying the breakthrough could be a model for dialogue to bring an end to the war in Ukraine.
- The Ukrainian military said Russian shelling was recorded in dozens of towns along the eastern and southern front lines. Reuters reports Ukraine’s military said late on Saturday that Russian forces had shelled dozens of front-line towns and were trying to attack in six different areas in the Donetsk region.
- Ukraine is investigating almost 26,000 suspected war crime cases committed since Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion and has charged 135 people, its chief war crimes prosecutor told Reuters.
- Human rights group Amnesty International apologised for the “distress and anger” caused by a report accusing Ukraine of endangering civilians, which infuriated president Volodymyr Zelenskiy and triggered the resignation if its Kyiv office head, Reuters reports. The report, published on Thursday, said the presence of Ukrainian troops in residential areas heightened risks to civilians during Russia’s invasion.
- UK defence secretary Ben Wallace welcomed a decision by Sweden to join countries contributing to the UK-led programme to train Ukrainian personnel in the UK.
- The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, landed in South Africa on Sunday to kick off a three-nation visit reportedly aimed at countering Russian influence on the continent. The visit come after Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, undertook an extensive tour of Africa late last month.
Ukraine is investigating almost 26,000 suspected war crime cases committed since Russia’s February invasion and has charged 135 people, its chief war crimes prosecutor has told Reuters.
Of those charged, about 15 were in Ukrainian custody and the remaining 120 remained at large, Yuriy Bilousov, head of the war crimes department of the prosecutor general’s office, said in an interview in the capital, Kyiv.
Thirteen cases had been submitted to courts and seven verdicts issued, he said.
In May, a 21-year-old captured Russian soldier became the first person to be convicted in a war crimes trial in Ukraine since Russia invaded on 24 February. He was sentenced to life in prison for killing an unarmed civilian.
“Sometimes we’ve been asked why we prosecute such ... low-ranked officers. It’s just because they are physically here ... If generals were here physically and we were able to capture [them], we would definitely prosecute generals,” Reuters reported Bilousov as saying.
Updated
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy presents orders and the other state awards to service personnel and to members of the families of fallen soldiers in Kyiv on Sunday on the Air Force of Ukraine Day.
Ukraine and Russia are pointing the finger at each other for shelling at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
While the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, called for a stronger international response to fresh shelling at the plant, reportedly by Russian forces, Russian occupation authorities claimed on Sunday a strike reportedly by Ukrainian forces had damaged administrative buildings inside the complex, AFP reports.
Zaporizhzhia – Europe’s largest atomic power complex that was occupied by Russia early in its offensive – has in recent days been the scene of military strikes that have damaged several structures, forcing the shutdown of a reactor.
On Sunday, Russian occupation authorities in the city of Energodar where the plant is located said that overnight, “the Ukrainian army carried out an attack with a cluster bomb fired from an Uragan rocket launcher,” AFP reports.
“The projectiles fell within 400 metres of a working reactor,” Russia’s TASS state news agency quoted them as saying.
The strike damaged some administrative buildings and fell in a “zone storing used nuclear fuel”.
The information could not be independently verified.
As Russia and Ukraine blamed each other for the attacks, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) warned on Saturday of “the very real risk of a nuclear disaster”.
Updated
Amnesty International apologised on Sunday for “distress and anger” caused by a report accusing Ukraine of endangering civilians which infuriated President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and triggered the resignation of its Kviy office head.
The rights group published the report on Thursday saying the presence of Ukrainian troops in residential areas heightened risks to civilians during Russia’s invasion, Reuters reports.
“Amnesty International deeply regrets the distress and anger that our press release on the Ukrainian military’s fighting tactics has caused,” it said in an email to Reuters.
“Amnesty International’s priority in this and in any conflict is ensuring that civilians are protected. Indeed, this was our sole objective when releasing this latest piece of research. While we fully stand by our findings, we regret the pain caused.”
Zelenskiy accused the group of trying to shift responsibility from Russian aggression, while Amnesty’s Ukraine head, Oksana Pokalchuk, quit, saying the report was a propaganda gift for Moscow.
Ukrainian officials say they try to evacuate civilians from front-line areas. Russia, which denies targeting civilians, has not commented on the rights report.
In its email on Sunday, Amnesty said it had found Ukrainian forces next to civilian residences in 19 towns and villages it visited, exposing them to risk of incoming Russian fire.
“This does not mean that Amnesty International holds Ukrainian forces responsible for violations committed by Russian forces, nor that the Ukrainian military is not taking adequate precautions elsewhere in the country,” it said.
“We must be very clear: Nothing we documented Ukrainian forces doing in any way justifies Russian violations.”
Updated
Pope Francis welcomed the departure from Ukrainian Black Sea ports of the first ships carrying grain previously blockaded by Russia, saying the breakthrough could be a model for dialogue to bring an end to the war in Ukraine.
At his weekly address to pilgrims and tourists in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, Pope Francis said:
This step shows that it is possible to conduct dialogue to reach concrete results, which help everyone.
This event presents itself as a sign of hope and my own heartfelt wish is that following this path, it will be possible to bring an end to the fighting and reach a just and lasting peace.
Zelenskiy calls for stronger international response to Russia’s 'nuclear terror'
The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has called for stronger international response to Russia’s “nuclear terror” after reported new shelling at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear power plant. During a phone call with the European Council president, Charles Michel, Zelenskiy called for sanctions to be imposed on the Russian nuclear industry and nuclear fuel, the Ukrainian leader wrote on Twitter.
Talked with @eucopresident Charles Michel, told about the situation on the battlefield, in particular at the Zaporizhzhia NPP. Russian nuclear terror requires a stronger response from the international community - sanctions on the Russian nuclear industry and nuclear fuel. (1/2)
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) August 7, 2022
Updated
UK defence secretary Ben Wallace today welcomed a decision by Sweden to join countries contributing to the UK-led programme to train Ukrainian personnel in the UK.
Sweden will join the growing list of countries contributing to the UK-led programme to train Ukrainian personnel in the UK, the Swedish Defence Ministry @ForsvarsdepSv announced today 🇸🇪🇬🇧🇺🇦
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) August 7, 2022
Defence Secretary @BWallaceMP today welcomed the decision.
🇺🇦 #StandWithUkraine 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/N3nzCevgWF
More details about the training programme can be found in this report from last month.
Ukraine’s state nuclear power company, Energoatom, said on Sunday that a worker was wounded when Russian forces again reportedly shelled the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the biggest in Europe, on Saturday evening.
It said on Telegram that the site of the plant’s dry storage facility, where 174 containers with spent nuclear fuel are stored in the open air, was hit by rocket attacks.
Updated
Here is the UK’s Ministry of Defence latest intelligence update on Ukraine.
Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine - 7 August 2022
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) August 7, 2022
Find out more about the UK government's response: https://t.co/Q9m6pBivU7
🇺🇦 #StandWithUkraine 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/CSsurnK3iR
The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, landed in South Africa on Sunday to kick off a three-nation visit aimed at countering Russian influence on the continent, AFP reports.
The visit come after Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, undertook an extensive tour of Africa late last month.
South Africa has remained neutral in the Ukraine war, refusing to join Western calls to condemn Moscow, which had opposed apartheid before the end of white minority rule in 1994.
Blinken will hold talks on Monday with his South African counterpart, Naledi Pandor, and also make an announcement on the US government’s new Africa strategy, Pretoria said in a statement. They will “discuss ongoing and recent developments relating to the global geopolitical situation,” it said.
The state department last month called African countries “geostrategic players and critical partners on the most pressing issues of our day, from promoting an open and stable international system, to tackling the effects of climate change, food insecurity and global pandemics to shaping our technological and economic futures”.
Blinken who is on his second trip to Africa since his appointment early last year, is due to proceed to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda later this week.
This analysis by the Guardian’s Africa correspondent Jason Burke of Lavrov’s tour gives a good insight into the battle for influence on the African continent. You can read it here:
Updated
More details on the ships that have left Ukrainian ports. They included Glory, with a cargo of 66,000 tonnes of corn bound for Istanbul, and Riva Wind, loaded with 44,000 tonnes of corn, heading for Turkey’s Iskenderun, the Turkish defence ministry said.
It said the other two vessels to have left Ukraine were Star Helena, with a cargo of 45,000 tonnes of meal heading to China, and Mustafa Necati, carrying 6,000 tonnes of sunflower oil and heading for Italy, Reuters reports.
The JCC also said it was near finalisation of the shipping procedures to regularise operations to support implementation of the grain deal. The procedures were expected to be published early this week, it said.
The first four ships left Ukraine last week under the agreement.
The JCC said it has also authorized the movement, pending inspection, of Osprey S, inbound for Chornomorsk. That ship is currently at anchorage northwest of Istanbul and was to be inspected on Sunday.
On Saturday, the JCC completed the inspection of Navistar, which was cleared to sail, and its joint inspection teams were to continue inspections on Sunday morning of the remaining two vessels that departed Ukrainian ports on Friday.
The first ship to leave a Ukrainian port under the deal will not arrive in Lebanon on Sunday as planned, the Ukrainian embassy in Lebanon said. The Razoni left Odesa last Monday carrying 26,527 tonnes of corn. The embassy told Reuters the ship was “having a delay” and “not arriving today,” with no details on a new arrival date or the cause of the delay. Shipping data on MarineTraffic.com showed the Razoni off the Turkish coast on Sunday morning.
An official with the Russian occupying authorities in Ukraine’s Kherson region has died after an assassination attempt, local Moscow-backed authorities as saying..
Vitaly Gura, the deputy chief of the Kakhovka district, “died of his injuries”, local official Katerina Gubareva, said on Telegram, AFP reports.
Gura was attacked at home on Saturday morning and was gravely wounded by bullets, a source in the Russian-backed administration is reported to have told TASS news agency.
Kakhovka is about 80 kilometres (50 miles) east of Kherson city.
Several assassination attempts have been reported against officials in Ukrainian regions seized by Russia since the start of its military operation in Ukraine in February.
Four more ships carrying food leave Black Sea ports
Four ships carrying Ukrainian foodstuffs sailed from Ukrainian Black Sea ports on Sunday as part of a deal to unblock the country’s sea exports, Ukrainian and Turkish officials said.
The four bulk carriers were loaded with more than 160,000 tonnes of corn and other foodstuffs, Reuters reports.
The resumption of grain exports is being overseen by a Joint Coordination Centre (JCC) in Istanbul where Russian, Ukrainian, Turkish and UN personnel are working.
The United Nations and Turkey brokered the deal last month after UN warnings of possible outbreaks of famine in parts of the world due to a halt in grain shipments from Ukraine that had squeezed supplies and sent prices soaring.
Before the invasion, Russia and Ukraine together accounted for nearly a third of global wheat exports.
The JCC has authorised the departure of a total of five new vessels through the Black Sea corridor: four vessels outbound from Chornomorsk and Odesa carrying 161,084 metric tonnes of foodstuffs, and one inbound. The first four ships left Ukraine last week under the agreement
Updated
Russian shelling reported in dozens of towns
The Ukrainian military said Russian shelling was recorded in dozens of towns along the eastern and southern front lines.
Reuters reports Ukraine’s military said late on Saturday that Russian forces had shelled dozens of front-line towns and were trying to attack in six different areas in the Donetsk region, all of which failed to gain any territory and were held back by Ukrainian forces. Reuters could not verify either side’s assertions about battlefield developments.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Saturday said that over the past week its forces had “achieved powerful results” in destroying Russia’s logistics supplies and rear bases.
He said in a late night address:
“Every strike on the enemy’s ammunition depots, on their command posts, and on accumulations of Russian equipment saves the lives of all of us, the lives of Ukrainian military and civilians.
Reuters also reports:
- Russia’s war in Ukraine is about to enter a new phase, with most fighting shifting to a nearly 350-km (217-mile) front stretching southwest from near Zaporizhzhia to Kherson, British military intelligence said.
- North Macedonia has agreed to supply tanks and planes to Ukraine to help fend off Moscow’s ongoing invasion, senior Ukrainian presidential aide Mykhailo Podolyak said.
- The next weapons package to Ukraine from the United States was expected to be $1 billion and include munitions for long-range weapons and armoured medical transport vehicles, sources briefed on the matter told Reuters.
Updated
More on the Zaporizhzhia power plant
Reuters reports:
- Shells hit a high-voltage power line at the plant, prompting operators to disconnect a reactor despite no radioactive leak being detected. The plant was captured by Russian forces in early March, but it is still run by its Ukrainian technicians.
- Ukraine’s state nuclear power company Energoatom blamed Russia for the damage at the power plant.
- Russia’s defence ministry accused Ukrainian forces of shelling the plant, saying a leak of radiation had been avoided only by luck.
- The United States has accused Russia of using it as a “nuclear shield” while Russia’s defence ministry said damage to the plant had only been avoided thanks to the “skilful, competent and effective actions” of its units.
IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said in a statement on Saturday:
I’m extremely concerned by the shelling yesterday at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, which underlines the very real risk of a nuclear disaster,”
Both sides have accused each other of engaging in “nuclear terrorism”.
Read more here:
IAEA raises concerns over nuclear plant shelling
Good morning and welcome to the blog, where we start with a round-up of the latest developments.
- The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency has raised grave concerns about shelling at a nuclear power plant in Ukraine. Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s office said it had started criminal proceedings against what it said was a rocket and artillery shelling by the Russian military of the Zaporizhzhia power plant on Friday.
- The Ukrainian military said Russian shelling was recorded in dozens of towns along the eastern and southern front lines.
- The head of Amnesty International’s Ukraine office has quit the human rights body in a disagreement with it after the group accused Ukraine’s armed forces of endangering civilians by basing troops in residential areas during the Russian invasion.
- A foreign-flagged ship arrived in Ukraine on Saturday for the first time since the war started and will be loaded with grain, Ukraine’s infrastructure minister said.
I’m Caroline Davies and will be taking you through other developments throughout the day. You can get in touch on caroline.davies@theguardian.com
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