In Kyiv, a State Emergency Service rescuer, arriving at a Russian attack site, had to extinguish a fire in his apartment, which was completely burned out by a Russian drone strike, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said. Serhiy Vlasenko, 35, has been working at the SES for 15 years.

Ukrainian troops struck Russian territory overnight into Friday using long-range Neptune missiles, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, calling it a just response to Moscow's ongoing attacks.

Ukraine struck an oil terminal at the seaport of Novorossiysk in Russia's Krasnodar Krai overnight, a source in the security forces told hromadske. The port ranks as Russia's second-largest oil export center and a vital logistics node for petroleum products.

Six people died and 35 were injured, including two children and a pregnant woman, in a Russian missile and drone assault on Kyiv overnight into Friday; rescue operations continue amid accounts from residents who escaped collapsing high-rises.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed a decree reconfiguring the National Security and Defense Council, removing the resigned Minister of Justice, German Galushchenko, and Minister of Energy, Svitlana Grynchuk, amid the Energoatom corruption probe, as reported on the President's Office website.

Russia plans to bring in about 12,000 North Korean workers to work at businesses in a special economic zone in Alabuga, Ukraine's military intelligence reports.

In Kyiv, the death toll from Russia's overnight attack has risen to five, according to city governor Tymur Tkachenko. 34 Kyiv residents were injured, including two children aged 7 and 10, with at least 15 hospitalized, including a pregnant woman.

Russian forces attacked a market in the Black Sea port city of Chornomorsk in Ukraine's Odesa Oblast with strike drones early on Friday, killing two people and wounding seven others, some in serious condition, regional governor Oleh Kiper reported.

Overnight, Russia launched a combined strike on critical infrastructure in Ukraine using strike UAVs and air, ground, and sea-based missiles. The Ukrainian military neutralized most of the targets, according to the Ukrainian Air Force.

Ukrainian Special Operations Forces destroyed a Russian troop cluster of the 51st Army in the village of Zatyshok near Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast.

Russian forces launched about 430 drones and 18 missiles, including ballistic and aeroballistic types, at Ukraine overnight into Friday, killing four people and wounding dozens, including children and a pregnant woman, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

Ukraine is in contact with US lawmakers regarding the exposed large-scale corruption scheme in the energy sector, Ukraine's Ambassador to the US Olga Stefanishyna said in an interview with NBC News.

Russian forces unleashed a massive combined missile and drone strike on Kyiv and the surrounding region overnight into Friday, killing at least four people and injuring 27 others, including two children, local officials reported.

"We had to regroup to avoid operational encirclement." A Ukrainian commander recounts the "hellish" days on the Zaporizhzhia front that led to dozens of soldiers from the 125th Brigade going missing. A story of confusion, loss, and families left searching for the truth.

The Ukrainian government will audit all state-owned companies, especially in the energy sector, after revelations of large-scale corruption, said Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko on social media. The Cabinet has already ordered supervisory boards to review their operations, focusing on procurement.

Ukraine's partners and the military are raising the issue of increasing mobilization in the country, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told Bloomberg. Sometimes the military indicates the need to recruit more people into the army, but the head of state added that it is necessary to "maintain a balance"

Russian forces killed three civilians with a drone strike on a two-wheel tractor in Kharkiv Oblast this morning as they traveled to collect pensions and aid, the Office of the Prosecutor General reported.

Russian forces launched one Iskander-M ballistic missile and 138 drones at Ukrainian regions overnight into Thursday, with air defenses neutralizing 102 drones but recording hits at 10 sites that damaged power equipment and injured six people.

Ukraine's Defense Forces for the first time used domestically produced Flamingo missiles in overnight strikes on dozens of Russian targets in occupied territories and inside Russia, the General Staff of the Armed Forces reported.

Russian troops attacked the village of Bohuslavka in the Borova territorial community of Kharkiv Oblast with a drone, regional governor Oleg Synegubov reported. Initially, two people were reported dead and two wounded. Later, it was reported that one of the victims died in an ambulance.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed a decree imposing three-year personal sanctions on businessmen Timur Mindich and Oleksandr Tsukerman, both Israeli passport holders, including asset freezes and trade bans, the presidential office announced.

The European Union will provide Ukraine with nearly €6 billion in budgetary assistance. The funds will be used to restore energy infrastructure and stabilize the energy system, said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during a speech in the European Parliament.

The High Anti-Corruption Court has imposed a pre-trial restriction on Liudmyla Zorina, who is suspected of involvement in a corruption scheme involving the embezzlement of funds from the state NPP operator Energoatom, according to a broadcast by the High Anti-Corruption Court.

Russian troops are not in control of Pokrovsk, and there is no operational encirclement of Ukrainian forces there, despite ongoing clashes with small infantry assault groups, Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on social media.

Atreyd created a "wall of drones" to counter Russian strike drones and bombs, Business Insider reports. This "wall" features dozens of FPV drones launched from platforms after radar detects threats. These drones form a "flying minefield," acting like a curtain that neutralizes targets by exploding.

Dozens of soldiers from Ukraine's 125th Brigade went missing in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Their families are demanding answers, claiming fallback positions didn't exist and evacuation was denied. One battalion commander confirms the chaos after a flank was exposed.

Kazakhstan and Russia have signed a declaration on the transition of inter-state relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership and alliance, the press service of the President of Kazakhstan reported. Tokayev and Putin held talks in the Kremlin, with delegations from both countries in attendance

High Anti-Corruption Court remanded Dmytro Basov, executive director of security at Energoatom, in custody with bail set at UAH 40m ($950,742), who is suspected of involvement in large-scale corruption in energy sector, according to a court broadcast. He appeared on NABU tapes under the name Tenor.

Ukraine's Energy Minister, Svitlana Grynchuk, announced her resignation amid a widening corruption probe into the state nuclear firm Energoatom, while Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko submitted requests to parliament to dismiss Grynchuk and Justice Minister German Galushchenko.

The High Anti-Corruption Court has imposed a pre-trial restriction on one of the defendants in the energy sector embezzlement case, Ihor Myroniuk, a former advisor to the Minister of Energy, according to a broadcast of the court hearing.

The State Border Service conducted an investigation into Timur Mindich's border crossing and stated that he left the country legally, according to the agency's report.

⚡️ After extensive corruption was uncovered in the energy sector, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has ordered the dismissal of the ministers of justice and energy, German Galushchenko and Svitlana Grynychuk, the head of state announced in a video address.

Ukrainian forces withdrew to more advantageous positions near Rivnopillia in Zaporizhzhia Oblast on Tuesday evening amid intense Russian fire, but enemy advances have been halted with heavy casualties inflicted, Southern Defense Forces reported.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine with the Order of the Golden Star to Oleksandr Hordiyenko, a farmer from Kherson Oblast, who single-handedly cleared mines from fields and shot down drones, according to the website of the Office of the President.

The Russian army now has its own unmanned forces, RIA Novosti reported, according to Astra. A commander of the unmanned systems forces had already been appointed, and regiments and other units have been formed, said Sergei Ishtuganov, deputy head of the new branch of the military.

Ukraine's Defense Forces struck the Stavrolen petrochemical plant in Russia's Stavropol Krai and an ammunition depot in occupied Donetsk Oblast, causing explosions and fires at the factory that produces components for Russian drones and military gear, the General Staff reported.

Russian troops attacked the Kholodnohirskyi district of Kharkiv with drones. Five people are known to have been injured, regional governor Oleg Synegubov reported. Russia attacked the old part of Kharkiv, almost in the city center. Currently, three drone strikes are confirmed.

Russian troops have increased their activity in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. During fierce fighting, they advanced and captured three settlements, as reported by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrskyi on Tuesday.

Russian forces launched 121 drones at Ukrainian regions overnight into Wednesday, with air defenses neutralizing 90 of them but recording hits at 19 sites that killed a 47-year-old man in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast and sparked fires in Kharkiv, the Ukrainian Air Force command reported.

Russia is ready to resume direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul "at any moment" if Kyiv shows political will, Alexei Ivanov, the acting Russian charge d'affaires in Türkiye, told the state news agency TASS.

A large group of children and teenagers has been returned to territory controlled by the Ukrainian government, the Bring Kids Back UA and Save Ukraine initiatives reported. Human rights activists shared the stories of some children who were successfully reunited with their families.

The Cabinet of Ministers has suspended German Galushchenko from his duties as Minister of Justice, Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced. The decision was made at an extraordinary government meeting this morning.

Rustem Umerov, Secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, has arrived in Istanbul to facilitate the prisoner swap process.

Ukrainian forces struck the Orsknefteorgsintez oil refinery in Russia's Orenburg Oblast overnight, sparking explosions and a fire that hit a primary crude processing unit, the Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff reported.

Ukraine's National Anti-Corruption Bureau announced charges against seven members of a criminal group accused of a massive energy sector corruption scheme that allegedly extracted kickbacks of 10-15% from suppliers to the state nuclear firm Energoatom.

Ukrainian troops were forced to retreat from some positions near four settlements in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, reported Vladyslav Voloshyn, spokesman for the Southern Defense Forces, in a comment to RBC-Ukraine.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is visiting Kherson on the third anniversary of the city's de-occupation, he announced on X. The Ukrainian leader stated that he held a meeting today with all those responsible for the city's security, including soldiers from the Unmanned Systems Forces.

Russian troops launched 119 drones at Ukraine overnight into Tuesday, with air defenses neutralizing 53 of them but recording hits at 18 sites that damaged energy and transport infrastructure in Odesa Oblast and knocked out heating in Kharkiv Oblast.

Ukraine's Defense Forces struck the Saratov Oil Refinery in Russia and several Russian military targets in occupied Crimea and Donetsk Oblast overnight into Tuesday, the Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff reported.

With the participation of Justice Minister German Galushchenko, investigative actions were indeed carried out as part of criminal proceedings, the Justice Ministry reported.