Russia is increasing efforts to stop its people accessing the wider internet, according to British intelligence. And a “massive” drone strike has destroyed an oil depot in western Ukraine, a military official has said.
Thursday 10 August 2023 11:52, UK
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A temporary humanitarian corridor has been set up to help commercial ships stuck in Ukraine’s Black Sea ports, the country’s navy has said.
Vessels are expected to start using it within days.
The route will also be used for moving grain and agricultural products, spokesperson Oleh Chalyk said.
“The corridor will be very transparent, we will put cameras on the ships and there will be a broadcast to show that this is purely a humanitarian mission and has no military purpose,” he said.
However, the military threat from Russia and mines placed in the sea still pose a risk, a separate navy statement said.
Ships have been stuck in Black Sea ports since Russia pulled out of a key grain deal last month which had allowed products to be exported safely.
At least 12 people are still missing after an explosion rocked a factory in Russia, a Moscow official has said.
One person was killed and more than 60 injured in the blast which damaged the Zagorsk Optical and Mechanical Plant in Sergiev Posad – around 30 miles (48.28 km) from the capital – yesterday.
Pyrotechnic equipment was being stored in a rented warehouse within the grounds, investigators have said.
The technical director of Pyro-Ross – a now bankrupt pyrotechnics firm – has been detained on suspicion of violating safety regulations, Olga Vradiy, of the Moscow region branch of the federal Investigative Committee, said.
She also said the number of those listed as missing had risen from eight to 12.
Around 38 apartment blocks in the surrounding area were also damaged, along with two schools, a sports complex and a store, Moscow’s governor said yesterday.
The factory produces equipment for industrial and healthcare applications and for the Russian security forces.
The cause of the blast is still unknown, but emergency services have dismissed early reports that it could have been caused by a Ukrainian drone attack.
Vladimir Putin is considering whether to attend his first in-person meeting with Western leaders since the start of the war in Ukraine, according to a Kremlin source.
The Russian president hasn’t ruled out appearing at the G20 meeting of major economies in Delhi next month, the official told our US partner network NBC News.
Mr Putin faces an election in nine months and he could view this as an opportunity to relaunch himself on the world stage, using it as a chance to woo countries that aren’t aligned with the West – such as China.
He had already been pulling back from appearing at international events during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
During that time, he participated in G20 meetings via video conference.
He also refused to participate in the 2022 event in Bali, where world leaders condemned his invasion.
Ukrainians collecting humanitarian aid have come “under fire” in a Russian shelling attack, an official has reported.
At least six people have been taken to hospital with injuries after the strike on Bilozerka in the southern Kherson region, local governor Oleksandr Prokudin said.
“The Russian army shelled Bilozerka with artillery. Six people were injured. Residents who were receiving humanitarian aid at that time came under fire,” he wrote on Telegram.
The frontline village, eight miles (12.87 km) west of Kherson, was one of the areas that suffered severe flooding after the Kakhovka dam was destroyed in June.
The attack on the dam, which Kyiv and Moscow have blamed each other for, sent huge amounts of water from the Dnipro River across swathes of southern Ukraine, ruining thousands of homes and forcing local people to flee.
Russia claims to have captured five strongholds and four observation points in the northeast city of Kupiansk.
Moscow’s 6th combined unit took the positions and “defeated an infantry platoon” during intense fighting, which saw Ukraine launch five counterattacks, the Russian defence ministry said.
All the attacks were successfully repelled and Ukrainian losses amounted to a “platoon of manpower”, it said on Telegram.
A platoon is usually made up of 20 to 50 soldiers and is commanded by a lieutenant.
Kupyansk holds strategic importance for both Ukraine and Russia.
Located 120km from Kharkiv, it has a vital railway junction, with one of the lines leading into Russia.
Sky News has not been able to verify the Russian claims.
This is the latest territorial situation, according to the Institute for the Study of War…
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has lost connection to is last main external power line and has been switched to a reserve source, Ukraine has said.
The facility, which is the largest in Europe, was on the verge of a blackout and had less than half of its power capacity before the change was made, state-owned energy company Energoatom said.
“Such a regime is difficult for the reactor plant, its duration is limited by the project’s design and it can result in failure of the main equipment of the energy unit,” it said on Telegram.
The plant has been occupied by Russia since the early days of the war and has become one of the focal points of the conflict.
Numerous concerns have been raised about its safety, with both sides blaming each other for attacking the area around it and risking a nuclear disaster.
The International Atomic Energy Agency has been trying to set up a safety mechanism to prevent accidents, and has carried out inspections of the plant in recent months to ensure a sabotage attack was not being planned.
Poland is being “cautious” by sending troops to the Belarusian border, a former military official has said.
The country is set to send up to 10,000 troops to bolster border defences and “scare away” potential attackers.
The decision came after concerns were raised about hundreds of Russian mercenary Wagner fighters arriving in Belarus last month, with the country’s president stating on multiple occasions he was stopping them from attacking Poland.
“I wouldn’t say they’ve been overcautious. They’re being cautious,” Lieutenant General Sir Simon Mayall, the former deputy chief of the defence staff, told Sky News.
He explained Poland is rearming at the moment, and are assessing a “rather dangerous frontier province” with Belarus.
“They’ve had a very long, rather tricky relationship with Belarus,” he added.
“In many ways, God helps those who help themselves”.
Many Western analysts have said Poland does not need to worry about an attack, with Belarusian forces lacking sufficient military capacity.
A “massive” Russian drone strike has destroyed an oil depot in Ukraine, a military official has said.
The facility came under fire in the country’s western Rivne region overnight, the head of the regional military administration Vitaly Koval said.
He appeared in a video purporting to be from the site in the Duben region as huge flames burned in the background and plumes of smoke rose into the air – you can see it here.
First responders were working to put out the fire, and no casualties had been reported, he said.
“Forty-five rescuers and 14 pieces of equipment are working at the scene. The fire train is involved,” he added.
“Corresponding investigative commissions headed by the heads of the regional law enforcement agencies are also working.”
Earlier, the Ukrainian air force said that seven out of 10 Iranian-made attack drones were shot down during a five-hour Russian attack overnight.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy is “very conscious” about losing the moral high ground in the war, and is being “very good” at not using Western weapons to attack Russia, a former military official has said.
The Ukrainian president has vowed not to use weapons supplied by the West to attack Russia – a condition set by many of the countries arming Kyiv.
The fear is such attacks would escalate war, dragging NATO members into the conflict.
However, there have been an increasing number of Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian territory with Moscow officials claiming to have downed at least 13 overnight.
“One of the things Ukraine has been very good at is not using military equipment gifted to them by Western powers outside their borders,” Lieutenant General Sir Simon Mayall, the former deputy chief of the defence staff, told Sky News.
“President Zelenskyy is very, very conscious of widening the war, losing the moral high ground and making Western support a bit more ambivalent.”
Despite concerns about Russian citizens being harmed in such strikes, Lt Gen Mayall said Ukrainians are “legitimately fighting back” – but need to attack more military targets.
As we’ve been reporting, the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia was struck by a Russian rocket last night.
At least three people were killed and another nine, including a child, were injured, according to Ukrainian officials.
A temple and shops in the Shevchenkiv district were reportedly destroyed by “high-precision” weapons in the strike.
Here are some photos of the aftermath…
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