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War In Ukraine: Latest Developments

Published

3 years ago

May 10, 2022

Here are the latest developments in the war in Ukraine:

Putin ready for ‘prolonged conflict’

Russian President Vladimir Putin will not end the Ukraine war with the campaign in the eastern Donbas region, says United States Director of National Intelligence, Avril Haines, warning he could make a play for the breakaway region of Transnistria in Ukraine’s neighbour to the west, Moldova.

“We assess President Putin is preparing for prolonged conflict in Ukraine during which he still intends to achieve goals beyond the Donbas,” Haines tells a Senate hearing.

She also says Putin could order martial law in Russia to support his ambitions in Ukraine but will use nuclear weapons only if he considers Russia faces an “existential threat.”

‘Over 1,000’ fighters holding out in Mariupol

Ukraine says that “more than 1,000” fighters are still holding out at the Azovstal steelworks in the south-eastern city of Mariupol, the last pocket of resistance to Russian control in the ruined port.

Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk denies reports that around 100 civilians are still in the steel mill, but says “hundreds” of fighters are wounded and require “urgent evacuation.”

Russian forces have besieged the plant but the fighters have refused to surrender.

At the weekend, Ukraine said all the women, children and elderly people that had been sheltering at the plant had been evacuated.

EU oil embargo possible ‘this week’

France, which holds the rotating presidency of the EU, says Hungary could agree to an EU-wide embargo on Russian oil as early as “this week.”

Landlocked Hungary, a Moscow ally that relies on Russian oil, has been holding up the embargo, saying it needs more time to find new energy sources.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said she made “progress” during talks with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Monday in Budapest.

“I think we could have a deal this week, we’re working hard to achieve that,” France’s European affairs minister Clement Beaune told France’s LCI broadcaster.

Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba says that his country’s EU membership bid is a question of “war and peace” for Europe.

He is speaking a day after French President Emmanuel Macron appeared to rule out Ukraine joining the European Union in the near future.

Macron says joining the bloc would take “decades” and suggests instead that Ukraine and other EU hopefuls like Moldova and Georgia be integrated into a new, yet-to-be-created “European political community.” The EU says it will give an opinion on Ukraine’s accession bid next month.

German foreign minister in Bucha

German Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock, makes a surprise visit to the Kyiv suburb of Bucha, where Russian forces are accused of massacring civilians before withdrawing from the region in late March.

Baerbock is the highest-ranking German official to visit Ukraine since the Russian invasion.

Ukraine’s foreign minister says Kyiv is grateful to Berlin for reviewing its policy of appeasement towards Moscow, and for backing a Russian oil embargo and agreeing to send heavy weapons to Ukraine.

Baerbock’s Dutch counterpart, Wopke Hoekstra, meanwhile visits the nearby town of Irpin.

Kyiv residents return en masse

Kyiv Mayor, Vitali Klitschko, says nearly two-thirds of the capital’s residents have returned to the city two-and-a-half months after the start of the war, which sparked a mass exodus.

“Before the war, 3.5 million people lived in Kyiv. Almost two-thirds of the capital’s residents have returned,” Klitschko says.

PUNCH.

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Again, Russia Claims Another Village In Ukraine’s Region

Published

7 hours ago

August 25, 2025

Editor

The Russian army Monday claimed to have captured another village in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region, moving deeper into Ukrainian territory as peace efforts stall.

Russian forces are slowly but steadily gaining ground in costly battles for largely devastated areas in eastern and central Ukraine, normally with few inhabitants or intact buildings left.

Russia’s defence ministry said its forces had seized the settlement of Zaporizke in the region, which Russian troops recently advanced into for the first time in the three-and-a-half-year offensive.

Kyiv denies that Russian troops have gained a foothold in the Dnipropetrovsk region, an important industrial hub.

After another push by US President Donald Trump to broker a Ukraine-Russia summit, hopes for peace dimmed when Russia last week ruled out any immediate meeting between presidents Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky.

The central region of Dnipropetrovsk has previously been largely spared from fighting that has ravaged swathes of eastern and southern Ukraine, until Russia said its forces broke through in July.

Dnipropetrovsk is not one of the five Ukrainian regions — Donetsk, Kherson, Lugansk, Zaporizhzhia and Crimea — that Moscow has publicly claimed as Russian territory.

Ukraine said Russia had launched over 100 drones Monday, killing a 37-year old civilian driver and wounding two people in the northeastern Sumy region.

Moscow said Kyiv had launched about two dozen drones targeting western Russia

Headline

US Comedian Reggie Carroll Shot Dead In Mississippi

Published

7 hours ago

August 25, 2025

Editor

A United States comedian, Reginald “Reggie” Carroll, has been shot dead in Southaven, Mississippi.

The 52-year-old Carroll, widely known as the Knockout King of Comedy, was reportedly killed on Wednesday, August 20, 2025, after sustaining multiple gunshot wounds.

The Southaven Police Department confirmed the incident in a Facebook statement on Saturday.

“Southaven officers located one male victim suffering from gunshot wounds.

“The officers and medical personnel provided life saving techniques but the individual succumbed to his injuries,” the statement partly read.

The victim was later identified as Carroll, a Baltimore native.

Police said one suspect was arrested and charged with his murder.

“One male is in custody and has been charged with the murder of Reginald Carroll.

“Our thoughts are with the family of Mr. Carroll.

“Thank you to the community for their patience and understanding,” the department added.

The police further assured that there was no ongoing threat to residents, describing the case as “an isolated shooting.”

Carroll, who built his career in stand-up comedy, gained national recognition touring with Katt Williams and headlining his own showcase, Knockout Kings of Comedy.

He also featured in the 2000 edition of Showtime at the Apollo, appeared on the UPN sitcom The Parkers alongside Mo’Nique and Countess Vaughn, and starred in the 2022 television film Rent & Go.

In 2023, he produced the stand-up special Knockout Kings of Comedy.

The Southaven Police Department disclosed that an investigation into his death is ongoing.

Headline

US Defends New Social Media Vetting For Nigerian Visa Applicants

Published

7 hours ago

August 25, 2025

Editor

The U.S. Mission in Nigeria on Monday reaffirmed that the safety and security of the United States remain the cornerstone of its visa application and decision-making process.

The US said this following its directive last week that mandates Nigerians to disclose all social media usernames and handles used over the past five years as part of the visa application process.

US Mission said Nigerian visa applicants must provide a comprehensive list of their social media profiles on the DS-160 visa application form, and warned that omitting the information could lead to visa denials.

Reacting to the development, the Federal Government said US citizens intending to visit Nigeria will be subjected to the same measures.

“The best we can do is to carry out reciprocal action. Some people from the US might want to apply for a visa, and we will adopt the same measures,” spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Ebienfa, said last Monday.

However, in a statement released Monday on X, the US Mission said prospective visa applicants undergo careful vetting to maintain a safe and welcoming environment in the US.

It said, “The safety and security of the United States is at the heart of every #USVisa application and decision process.

“That’s why prospective applicants undergo careful screening to ensure a safe and welcoming environment for all.”

The Mission added, “These measures help protect American citizens and communities while supporting secure and responsible travel.”