Russia-Ukraine War Latest News: Deadly Ukrainian drones strike two oil refineries in Russia
At least two people were killed after a Ukrainian drone strike targeted the Afipsky oil refinery in Russia, according to local authorities.
Veniamin Kondratyev, governor of the southern Krasnodar region, said debris from the attack also injured two people.
The Afipsky refinery is among the largest oil-processing facilities in southern Russia.
Meanwhile, the Novoshakhtinsky oil refinery in the neighbouring Rostov region was damaged in a separate drone attack and temporarily halted its processing operations.
Both facilities have been targeted in previous Ukrainian strikes amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
Russia-Ukraine War Latest News: Russia targets another shopping centre in overnight strike
Another shopping centre in Ukraine was targeted by Russia in an overnight strike.
Russia has been increasingly targeting shopping centres across Ukraine.
Last week, a double-tap strike on the packed Soniachna Gallereia mall in Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk region, killed at least 16 people and injured 128, including at least 23 children.
Danielle Bell, head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU), said on Saturday that the attack appears to constitute a breach of international humanitarian law.
“The fact that the shopping centre was struck twice within approximately 30 minutes strongly indicates it was the intended target of this attack,” she said.
“Our observations and interviews with victims and witnesses have so far not identified any military presence, activity or equipment at the site that could render the shopping centre a military objective.
“Instead, we found an operational shopping centre crowded with civilians on a Friday afternoon.”
Russia-Ukraine War Latest News: Ukraine displays its land, air and sea drones in Independence Day celebrations
Monday’s Independence Day speeches by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and foreign delegates at St Sophia Square in Kyiv were accompanied by a parade of domestically produced weapons.
Hovering in the sky above the capital, a squadron of aerial drones carried out a demonstration of Ukrainian military technology, which has helped to keep Russian forces in check.
Naval drones swept along the Dnipro River, while unnamed ground vehicles – some equipped with heavy machine guns – trundled in formation along one of the city’s main commercial avenues.
Russia-Ukraine War Latest News: Zelensky says Ukraine wants peace but won’t give in
Ukraine wants peace but will not just surrender to Russia at any price, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a defiant speech on Monday to mark Independence Day, as foreign leaders pledged their support.
“Ukraine absolutely wants peace, but it is not ready to simply surrender,” Zelensky said, warning that Russia would not halt its aggression even if Ukraine ceded to its demands for more territory in the country’s east.
