A senior eastern Ukrainian separatist who had organised combat units to fight against his own country has reportedly been killed following an explosion in northwest Moscow.
At least five people were wounded or killed after what has been reported as a bomb detonated at the Alye Parusa residential complex in the capital.
Russian state media site Tass claimed Armen Sarkisyan, 46, a senior pro-Russian paramilitary from east Ukraine's Donetsk region, died in hospital after being seriously injured in the explosion. They claimed the explosion had been an “assassination” attempt.
Mr Sarkisyan is a close associate of Ukraine’s pro-Kremlin former president Viktor Yanukovych, who was ousted after the Euromaidan revolution in 2014. Ukraine’s security services, the SBU, says Mr Sarkisyan has been on their international wanted list since then for organising murders in central Kyiv.
After the full-scale invasion in 2022, Mr Sarkisyan also reportedly organised the “Arbat” Separate Guards Special Purpose Battalion to fight against Ukraine.
It comes as Ukraine struck energy facilities in southern Russia with dozens of drones, triggering fires at a major oil refinery and gas processing plant and disrupting flights from the Volga to the Caucasus Mountains, Russian and Ukrainian officials said.
Key Points
- One killed in Moscow residential building blast
- Saudi Arabia, UAE possible venues for Trump-Putin summit
- Russia and Ukraine trade blame over attack on boarding school
Trump wants Ukraine to supply US with rare earths in exchange for aid
04:53
,
Arpan Rai
Donald Trump has said he wants Ukraine to supply the United States with rare earth metals as a form of payment for financially supporting the country's war efforts against Russia.
Mr Trump, speaking to reporters at the White House, said Ukraine was willing to participate in the idea, adding that he wants "equalisation" from Ukraine for Washington's "close to $300bn" in support.
"We're telling Ukraine they have very valuable rare earths," Mr Trump said. "We're looking to do a deal with Ukraine where they're going to secure what we're giving them with their rare earths and other things."
It was not immediately clear if the US president was using the term "rare earths" to refer to all types of critical minerals or just to rare earths.
Rare earths are a group of 17 metals used to make magnets that turn power into motion for electric vehicles, cellphones and other electronics. There are no known substitutes.
Russia suffers major casualty as deputy governor killed by landmine in Kursk
04:00
,
Andy Gregory
A deputy regional governor has become the most senior Russian government official to die fighting against Ukraine.
Sergey Efremov, the deputy governor of the eastern Primorsky Krai region, died in Kursk, where Russian forces have been trying to beat back a Ukrainian invasion since last August.
Efremov was reportedly killed along with a military officer on Friday when their vehicle struck a landmine and blew up.
Arpan Rai reports:
UN nuclear agency chief heads to Kyiv for crucial safety inspection
03:59
,
Arpan Rai
The UN nuclear agency's top official is heading to Kyiv for a safety inspection of the war-hit nation's nuclear plants.
Rafael Grossi, the director general at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said on X:"On my 11th visit to Ukraine since the war began. I'm heading to Kyivska substation, critical for the safety of Ukraine's nuclear power, to assess damage and help prevent a nuclear accident."
On my 11th visit to Ukraine since the war began, I’m heading to Kyivska substation, critical for the safety of Ukraine’s nuclear power, to assess damage and help prevent a nuclear accident.
— Rafael MarianoGrossi (@rafaelmgrossi) February 3, 2025
An increasingly fragile grid poses a growing risk to all NPPs, not just ZNPP. pic.twitter.com/64V8DvByI7
Last week, the IAEA said in a statement that Mr Grossi would visit Kyiv for "high-level" meetings to ensure nuclear safety in the war that Russia started in February 2022.
More than half of the electricity consumed in Ukraine is generated by three nuclear power plants, but Russian missile and drone attacks on substations threaten the stable operation of nuclear power plants, according to Ukraine's nuclear inspector's office.
Ukraine brings back 12 children forcibly taken to Russia
03:46
,
Arpan Rai
Ukraine has brought home 12 children forcefully taken by Russia, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky's chief of staff Andriy Yermak said late yesterday.
"As part of the initiative of the President of Ukraine Bring Kids Back UA, it was possible to return home 12 children who were under the pressure of the Russian occupation," Mr Yermak said on his Telegram channel.
The Bring Kids Back UA programme under Mr Zelensky is an initiative to return home all children forcefully deported from Ukraine, according to the initiative's statement.
Among the returned children is a 16-year-old girl who lost her mother, a 17-year-old teenager who was issued a summons to the Russian army, and an eight-year-old girl, Mr Yermak said.
There was no immediate comment from Russia.
An arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin is already issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, which accuses him of war crimes by taking hundreds of Ukrainian children from orphanages.
Father of Brit man, who died in Ukraine, pays tribute: 'His heart was set on it'
03:34
,
Arpan Rai
The father of an 18-year-old British volunteer James Wilton, who was killed by a Russian drone in Ukraine, has paid tribute and said his son was a “polite, likeable young man”.
“My son James had only just turned 18 when he decided he wanted to go volunteer and fight in Ukraine,” his father Graham Wilton told The Sun.
“I didn’t necessarily agree with his decision on this but we talked at length about why he wanted to do this,” he said.
“I’ll never get over this. I didn’t want him to go but his heart was set on it. He wanted to help Ukraine,” his father said.
“James was a polite, likeable young man and never really had a bad word to say about anyone or anything,” he said.
Watch: Ukraine uses old-fashioned weapons in fight to down Russian drones
03:00
,
Andy Gregory
Who is the 18-year-old Brit James Wilton killed in Ukraine invasion?
02:55
,
Arpan Rai
James Wilton, from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire was only 17 when he left college and travelled to join international fighters in Ukraine.
It was against the wishes of his mother and sisters, because he wanted to make a difference and to help those suffering from the war.
Within days of reaching the battlefront, Wilton was killed by a Russian drone when crossing open ground with a heavy pack on his back. The young man could not be saved, despite the efforts of his friend, an American volunteer named Jason.
It was his first mission fighting in Ukraine.
Exclusive: Ex-Tory MP joins Ukraine’s foreign legion to aid fight against Putin
02:00
,
Andy Gregory
A former Tory MP who lost his seat at the general election last year has joined the Ukrainian International Legion to help in the fight against Vladimir Putin’s Russia.
Jack Lopresti, a former deputy chair of the Conservative Party, was previously the MP for Filton and Bradley Stoke in Gloucestershire, but is now based in Kyiv using his skills in the ongoing war.
As an MP, Mr Lopresti visited Ukraine and was a strong advocate in parliament for more aid to be given to Volodymyr Zelensky to support the country’s efforts to defeat Russia. He has also served in the UK Army Reserve as a corporal.
Our political editor David Maddox has the full report:
Saudi Arabia, UAE seen as possible venues for Trump-Putin summit, Russian sources say
01:00
,
Tom Watling
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are seen by Russia as possible venues for a summit between US president Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin, two Russian sources with knowledge of the discussions told Reuters.
Mr Trump has said he will end the war in Ukraine as soon as possible and said he is ready to meet with Putin. Mr Putin congratulated Mr Trump on his election and stated he is ready to meet the US leader to discuss Ukraine and energy.
Russian officials have repeatedly denied any direct contact with the US about preparations for a phone call between Mr Trump and Mr Putin, which would precede an eventual meeting later this year.
However, senior Russian officials have visited both Saudi Arabia and the UAE in recent weeks, according to the Russian sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the situation.
One source said there was still some opposition to the idea in Russia as some diplomats and intelligence officials were pointing to the close military and security links that both the Kingdom and the UAE have with the United States.
Russia and Ukraine trade blame over attack on boarding school
00:00
,
Tom Watling
Competing claims emerged over a deadly attack on a boarding school in Sudzha, a city in Russia’s Kursk region that has been under Ukrainian control for five months, with Ukraine and Russia accusing each other of carrying out the strike.
The General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces said Saturday night that four people were killed and a further four seriously wounded in the strike, with 84 people rescued by Ukrainian servicemen from the rubble of the building. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Moscow had bombed the boarding school where civilians were sheltering and preparing to evacuate.
The General Staff said those in need of additional medical assistance were evacuated to medical facilities in Ukraine.
The Russian Ministry of Defense claimed in the early hours of Sunday that it was Ukrainian forces that had launched a missile strike on the school, saying that the missiles were launched from Ukraine’s Sumy region.
Battle for Pokrovsk: The Ukraine that city could be the most important of the war
Monday 3 February 2025 23:20
,
Andy Gregory
Russian forces are intensifying their offensive around the strategically vital Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, threatening key supply lines and raising concerns about a potential encirclement.
The city, a crucial logistical hub in eastern Ukraine, has become a focal point in the nearly three-year-long conflict.
While Ukrainian defenders are fiercely resisting the Russian advance, the situation in Pokrovsk grows increasingly precarious. The city’s main supply routes are under constant threat, with Russian troops encroaching from multiple directions.
Read the full article here:
Monday 3 February 2025 22:50
,
Tom Watling
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on Monday that an increase in number of Ukrainian prisoners of war executed by Russian forces requires an urgent international response.
A UN body reported on Monday that it had recorded an "alarming rise" in reported executions in recent months.
"The world must not only condemn, but also take urgent action. We need new and effective international legal tools, and concrete steps to hold the perpetrators accountable," Sybiha said on X.
The @UNHumanRights confirms Russia's growing executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war. At least 79 cases since the end of August 2024.
— Andrii Sybiha (@andrii_sybiha) February 3, 2025
This could be one of the largest campaigns of intentional POW murder in modern history.
These atrocities demand urgent international action.
Russia and Trump push Europe to be more independent, Macron says
Monday 3 February 2025 22:20
,
Tom Watling
French president Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the policies of US president Donald Trump were pushing Europe to take more responsibility for its own physical and economic security.
Macron made the comments as he arrived at a gathering of European Union leaders in Brussels to discuss relations with the United States and bolstering Europe's military defences.
The start of the summit was overshadowed by Trump declaring at the weekend that he will soon impose tariffs on imports from the EU, having just ordered similar measures on goods from Canada, Mexico and China.
Arriving leaders warned Trump against starting a trade war and said the EU would retaliate if he did so.
Macron said Trump's policies were one of several factors pushing the EU to become less dependent on others.
"The COVID epidemic and the Russian aggression in Ukraine were moments of awakening," Macron told reporters.
"What's happening at this very moment today in Ukraine, what's happening also now with the choices, the declarations of the new American administration of President Trump pushes the Europeans to be more united, more active to respond on subjects of their collective security," he said.
This meant boosting Europe's defence industry and buying more European arms, Macron said.
Father pays tribute to British son, 18, killed in Ukraine
Monday 3 February 2025 21:50
,
Andy Gregory
The father of an 18-year-old British volunteer who was killed by a Russian drone while on his first mission fighting in Ukraine has paid tribute, saying his son was a “polite, likeable young man”.
James Wilton, from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, left college and travelled to join international fighters, against the wishes of his mother and sisters, because he wanted to make a difference and to help those suffering from the war.
He was killed in July in a drone attack when crossing open ground with a heavy pack on his back and could not be saved, despite the efforts of his friend, an American volunteer named Jason.
Mr Wilton's father Graham said: "My son James had only just turned 18 when he decided he wanted to go volunteer and fight in Ukraine. I didn't necessarily agree with his decision on this but we talked at length about why he wanted to do this.
"He'd just finished college and wasn't really sure about what he wanted from life. But from our conversations he made it clear to me that this was what he wanted to do.
"So I did everything I possibly could to make sure he knew exactly what was involved and that he could be fully prepared for what may lay ahead.
"James was a polite, likeable young man and never really had a bad word to say about anyone or anything. I made sure he was as prepared as he could be before I took him to Manchester Airport for his flight to Krakow.
"I also told him to speak with his sisters and his mother before he left, which he did, but they were dead set against him going. But James made his mind up and he would've gone regardless, so he had my blessing and knew I was here if he needed me."
Full report: Moscow apartment blast ‘kills pro-Putin paramilitary leader’
Monday 3 February 2025 21:19
,
Andy Gregory
A pro-Putin paramilitary leader was killed in a bomb blast in the lobby of a luxury apartment building in Moscow, according to Russian authorities and news reports.
Armen Sarkisyan, who Ukraine has accused of aiding Russia's war in Donetsk, was targeted in the attack; he was critically injured in the blast and later died in hospital, according to the Kommersant newspaper.
Another person was killed and three others injured in the blast. State news agency Tass cited an unidentified law enforcement source as saying a bomb was planted in the building.
In December, Sarkisyan – who also ran a boxing federation – was charged in absentia by the Security Service of Ukraine with participation in illegal armed or paramilitary formations or assisting such formations in combat operations against its armed forces.
The agency, known as the SBU, has previously accused Sarkisyan of recruiting prisoners to fight in Ukraine, cooperating with Russian security forces, and creating an armed formation known as “ArBAT” – or “Armenian Battalion”.
Tom Watling reports:
Watch: UK editor issues defiant response after Russia places him on wanted list
Monday 3 February 2025 20:50
,
Andy Gregory
Moldova denounces drone intrusion in its airspace
Monday 3 February 2025 20:20
,
Andy Gregory
Moldova has denounced what it said was a violation of its airspace by a drone and said it was discussing with its allies how to boost air defences, having suffered numerous such violations as a result of Russia’s war.
A foreign ministry statement did not identify the origin of the drone, but said it entered Moldovan airspace overnight. Moldova's defence ministry said the drone entered the country's airspace from Ukraine, remained for a brief time, and then went back over Ukrainian territory.
"Such actions are unacceptable and represent a potential threat to national security and our citizens," the foreign ministry said.
"In this context, Moldova is analysing the circumstances of the incident and is engaging in active dialogue with international partners to prevent a similar situation and strengthen the defences of (our) airspace."
Nato chief insists Washington still knows US and Europe 'must stay connected'
Monday 3 February 2025 19:50
,
Andy Gregory
Nato chief Mark Rutte has claimed that both the US and Europe realise Ukraine is a “geopolitical” issue and “for so many reasons, we have to stay connected”.
Asked if Europe should plan for a future of defence that does not include the US, Mr Rutte suggested it was a "silly thought" to think the military bloc could run without the US.
“This is a geopolitical thing playing out at the moment with Ukraine,” he said. “The US realises that, the European side of Nato realises it ... The US is also under threat now with the ... long-range missiles coming out of North Korea, maybe in the future, thanks to all the technology the Russians are delivering.
“So, for so many reasons, we have to stay connected. I am a staunch transatlanticist. I absolutely believe that the best thing the West can do is to stay united, and I know that the same thinking is still prevalent in the US.”
US arms shipments to Kyiv briefly paused before resuming over weekend, sources say
Monday 3 February 2025 19:20
,
Andy Gregory
US shipments of weapons into Ukraine were briefly paused in recent days before resuming over the weekend as the Trump administration debated its policy towards Kyiv, four people briefed on the matter have told Reuters.
Shipments restarted after the White House pulled back on its initial assessment to stop all aid to Ukraine, two of the sources said.
There are factions inside the administration that are at odds over the extent to which Washington should continue to aid Kyiv's war effort with weapons from US stocks, one US official claimed.
Trump says he wants Ukraine to supply US with rare earth minerals
Monday 3 February 2025 18:51
,
Andy Gregory
Donald Trump has said that he wants Ukraine to supply the US with rare earth minerals, telling reporters at the White House that Kyiv is willing to do so.
According to the World Economic Forum, Ukraine’s diverse geological zones make it a top 10 global supplier of mineral resources, with Kyiv holding around 5 per cent of the world’s total.
These include titanium, lithium, beryllium, manganese, gallium, and uranium, which are vital across a range of key industries such as aerospace, medical and defence, as well as the production of batteries, LEDs, semiconductors and nuclear power.
Inside Kyiv’s nightly battle against Putin’s drone bombardment
Monday 3 February 2025 18:00
,
Tom Watling
Blast in an upscale residential area in Moscow kills 1 and leaves 4 wounded
Monday 3 February 2025 17:30
,
Tom Watling
Live: Starmer urges Nato leaders to step up support for Ukraine
Monday 3 February 2025 16:59
,
Tom Watling
British teenager killed 'minutes into first mission' in Ukraine
Monday 3 February 2025 16:30
,
Tom Watling
Ukraine's military urges tough response after attacks on draft officers
Monday 3 February 2025 16:00
,
Tom Watling
Ukraine's army chief condemned on Monday a spate of violent attacks on draft officers, rallying in defence of a national call-up effort that has fuelled anger among some Ukrainians and struggled to generate sufficient frontline manpower.
The incidents, including the fatal shooting of a draft officer and explosions at two draft offices in three days, pile pressure on an already-troubled national campaign to draft civilians despite faltering enthusiasm for service.
The setback comes as Ukraine is trying to project strength ahead of a potential negotiating process, with US president Donald Trump pushing for a swift end to the war, while Russian troops continue to capture more territory in the east.
General Oleksandr Syrskyi, who has complained of manpower shortages at the front, denounced what he said were "shameful acts of violence", demanding investigations and punishment for incidents that killed two people and wounded seven more.
"The common goal of defending Ukraine is impossible without the entire nation's support of the army and respect for military personnel," he wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
The police arrested two suspects after the draft officer was shot dead on Friday at a petrol station in the central region of Poltava.
Prosecutors said one of the suspects had shot the officer, allowing a second man who had been mobilised and was in the officer's charge to escape.
The next day an explosion inside a draft office in the northwestern city of Rivne killed one person and wounded six others, military officials said, without providing details. On Sunday, another explosion wounded one person at a draft office in Pavlohrad, authorities said.
'Alarming rise' in Russian execution of captured Ukrainian soldiers, says UN
Monday 3 February 2025 15:24
,
Tom Watling
UN body reports 'alarming rise' in Russian execution of captured Ukrainian soldiers
Monday 3 February 2025 14:18
,
Tom Watling
The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission has recorded an "alarming rise" in reported executions of Ukrainian soldiers captured by the Russian armed forces during the war in recent months, it said on Monday.
The mission in Ukraine said it had received reports of 79 executions in 24 separate incidents since the end of August last year. International humanitarian law prohibits the execution of prisoners of war and the wounded, and regards it as a war crime.
"Many Ukrainian soldiers who surrendered or were in physical custody of the Russian armed forces were shot dead on the spot. Witness accounts also described the killings of unarmed and injured Ukrainian soldiers," the mission said in a statement.
The UN body obtained and analysed video and photographic material published by Ukrainian and Russian sources showing executions or dead bodies and conducted detailed interviews with witnesses.
It said the reported executions took place in areas where Russian offensive operations were underway.
Danielle Bell, head of the mission, said some Russian officials "have explicitly called for inhumane treatment, and even execution" of captured Ukrainian soldiers.
The mission said it also documented the execution of a wounded and incapacitated Russian soldier by the Ukrainian armed forces in 2024, but gave no details.
The Ukrainian prosecutor's office earlier said it was investigating dozens of cases of executions of Ukrainian military personnel by Russian forces.
Ukraine says it hit Russian gas, oil plants contributing fuel to Moscow's army
Monday 3 February 2025 13:52
,
Tom Watling
Ukraine's military has confirmed it hit a Russian oil refinery in the Volgograd region and a gas processing plant in the Astrakhan region overnight, adding that both facilities contributed fuel to Moscow's army.
The refinery's primary processing facilities were damaged, the general staff said on Telegram, and the gas plant caught fire leading to the suspension of operations.
Pro-Russian separatist 'lost left leg' in Moscow blast
Monday 3 February 2025 10:32
,
Tom Watling
Pro-Russian separatist Armen Sarkisyan has reportedly lost a leg and is being rushed into surgery after being caught up in an explosion in northwest Moscow.
There are varying accounts of Mr Sarkisyan’s injuries but Russian state media Tass reports that the figure is in intensive care and is being prepared for surgery.
In pictures: Police work a site of Moscow explosion
Monday 3 February 2025 10:26
,
Tom Watling
Ukraine shot down nearly 3,000 Russian drones and missiles last month, Kyiv claims
Monday 3 February 2025 10:10
Ukrainian defences shot down 2,800 missiles and drones fired by Russia in January, Kyiv’s defence ministry has claimed.
In January, Ukrainian air defenders shot down 2,300 enemy aerial targets:
— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) February 3, 2025
◾️31 Kh-101, Caliber, Iskander-K cruise missiles
◾️2 Iskander-M ballistic missiles
◾️12 Kh-59/69 guided aircraft missiles
◾️1,595 Shahed UAVs
◾️388 reconnaissance UAVs
◾️236 UAVs of other types
Great job,… pic.twitter.com/M0VzERO6qe
Who is Armen Sarkisyan, the alleged target of a Moscow explosion?
Monday 3 February 2025 09:51
,
Tom Watling
We have been reporting that an explosion in a luxury residential complex in northwest Moscow, described by Russian state media as an “assassination”, has seriously wounded a senior pro-Putin Ukrainian collaborator.
The figure in question, Armen Sarkisyan, from the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk, is a known close associate of former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych, the pro-Russian politician who was ousted in 2014 following a pro-democracy movement. He later fled to Russia.
In December 2024, Ukraine’s security services (SBU) notified Mr Sarkisyan in absentia that he was being investigated for forming combat units to fight against Ukraine and assisting Russia.
In a statement on Telegram, the SBU wrote: “Comprehensive measures are underway to find and punish the perpetrator for crimes against our state.”
Below, we have some bullet-pointed information on Mr Sarkisyan.
- The SBU alleged Mr Sarkisyan formed the “Arbat” Separate Guards Special Purpose Battalion to fight against Ukraine after the full-scale invasion in February 2022.
- He reportedly recruited prisoners from the occupied Donetsk region to make up the battalion, under the instruction of the FSB, Russia’s security services.
- These forces fought first in Toretsk, Donetsk, and then in Kursk, the Russian border region partially controlled by Ukraine since last August.
- Mr Sarkisyan has been on Ukraine’s international wanted list since May 2014 for, the SBU says, “organising murders in the centre of Kyiv”.
- During the Euromaidan revolution in 2014, Mr Sarkisyan, who has been described as a crime boss, also allegedly hired pro-government thugs, known as titusky, to harass demonstrators.
У Москві – вибух в елітному ЖК, підірвали кримінального авторитета з Донбасу Саркісяна, якому СБУ висунула підозру, – ЗМІ
— Новинарня (@Novynarnia) February 3, 2025
⬇️https://t.co/Kb9hSgrKKs pic.twitter.com/xVarZxhkyZ
Kremlin says contacts are 'apparently planned' with Trump administration
Monday 3 February 2025 09:35
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Tom Watling
The Kremlin, asked on Monday about US president Donald Trump's remarks that talks and meetings with Russia are scheduled, said that contacts were “apparently planned”, and that Moscow had a planning process.
Russian energy plant shut down before drone attack, claims governor
Monday 3 February 2025 09:01
,
Tom Watling
A Russian energy plant targeted by Ukrainian drones overnight was shut down following warnings of an imminent aerial attack, a local official has claimed.
Igor Babushkin, governor of the Astrakhan region, said the plant, located hundreds of miles from Ukraine and further still from Ukrainian forces, posted a video of him at the facility this morning.
“Having received early signals about the danger of the UAV [Unammed Aerial Vehicles], the enterprise stopped its work,” he said.
The plant, controlled by gas giant Gazprom, is capable of processing around 8,340 metric tons of gas condensate per day.
Unverified videos on social media showed giant flames and black smoke leaping into the night sky above a processing plant, as bystanders expressed shock at the size of the fire.
Ukrainian Lieutenant Andriy Kovalenko, who heads the Center for Countering Disinformation, part of the National Security and Defense Council, said the Astrakhan gas processing plant had been hit.
On 3 February overnight, drones hit one of Russia's key energy facilities, resulting in a fire.
— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) February 3, 2025
The Astrakhan Gas Processing Plant processes gas condensate and produces gasoline, diesel fuel, and more.
The energy sector in Russia is one of the main sources of war funding.… pic.twitter.com/elvX0XZ5Lg
Special Dispatch | Inside Kyiv’s nightly battle against Putin’s drone bombardment
Monday 3 February 2025 08:57
,
Alex Croft
The crack and the ear-splitting blast – two in a row, then a third – rattle windows and set off car alarms. But, in a city under constant bombardment, a smoker in a doorway tips a little ash and takes another drag.
A hotel receptionist, pooled in lamplight, doesn’t look up from her papers.
The explosions, they know, come from outgoing long-range anti-aircraft missiles being fired from the centre of the Ukrainian capital against incoming attacks.
While the citizens of Kyiv won’t move for these, the sound of lawnmower engines in the sky will prompt an immediate race to cellars and shelters.
For swarms of Iranian-made Russian Shahed unmanned drones are fired at Ukraine almost every night. They’re about two metres across, delta winged, and carry between 30kg and 50kg of explosive. They are guided by a primitive GPS system and driven by whining two-stroke engines.
Read the special dispatch by our world affairs editor Sam Kiley:
Possible target of Moscow bombing named
Monday 3 February 2025 08:48
,
Tom Watling
An explosion in Moscow that Russian state media has described as an “assassination” attempt has seriously wounded a senior pro-Russian paramilitary from eastern Ukraine.
One person was killed and four injured in the blast in northwest Moscow this morning.
Among the wounded is Armen Sarkisyan, a senior pro-Russian paramilitary from east Ukraine's Donetsk region, Russia's Tass news agency has reported.
