Russia has launched a major drone attack on Ukraine’s capital Kyiv on New Year’s Day that has killed two people and injured at least six others.
More than 100 drones targeted the city in the early hours of Wednesday morning as the rest of the world was celebrating the arrival of 2025.
At least six people including a pregnant woman were among the injured, city officials said.
In his New Year’s message, Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky said he had no doubt incoming US president Donald Trump was capable of achieving peace.
The president-elect has boasted that he would be able to end the war “within 24 hours” of returning to office after his victory in the US elections in November.
Mr Zelensky thanked the current US administration for providing a wide array of critical military equipment, including 39 multiple-launch rocket systems, 301 Howitzer artillery weapons and over 300 million units of ammunition, as he recalled conversations with outgoing president Joe Biden and “everyone who supports us in the United States”.
Key points
- Two people killed after New Year’s drone attack on Kyiv
- Trump ‘willing, capable of ending Putin’s aggression’, says Zelensky
- Russian helicopter downed by Ukrainian naval drone, Kyiv says
- Ukrainian drone attack causes oil spill and fire in Russia, local governor says
- Zelensky hails return of Ukrainian POWs as ‘very good news’
Ukraine ends Russian gas pipeline to Europe - but how much will it cost Moscow?
16:01
Joe Middleton
As of January 1 2025, Russian gas is no longer flowing into Europe via Ukraine’s pipeline.
A five-year deal between Gazprom, the Russian state energy company, and Ukraine expired at 5am GMT Wednesday morning.
The deal had allowed for Russian gas to travel through Ukraine’s pipeline networks into European countries, primarily Hungary, Slovakia and Austria.
Ukraine refused to renew the gas transit deal, which has existed in some form since 1991, with President Volodymyr Zelensky saying that Russia would not be allowed to “earn billions on our blood”.
The move will not cut off all Russian gas to Europe, but significantly reduce it. Gas can still travel from Russia to Europe via the TurkStream pipeline, but no longer through Ukraine, cutting gas imports to the EU by around 14 billion cubic meters.
UPDATE: Two people killed after New Year’s drone attack on Kyiv
15:10
Joe Middleton
Russia launched a New Year’s Day drone strike on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early on Wednesday, killing two people, wounding at least six others and damaging buildings in two districts, authorities said.
Explosions boomed across the morning sky as Ukraine‘s air force warned of incoming drones and Mayor Vitali Klitschko said air defences were repelling an enemy attack.
Two floors of a residential building in central Kyiv were partially destroyed in the strike, according to the State Emergency Service. Two people were killed, it said.
War in Ukraine: A snapshot of 2024 military warfare
14:39
Alex Croft
Russian forces in 2024 advanced in Ukraine at the fastest rate since 2022, the war’s first year, and control about a fifth of the country. But the gains have come at the cost of heavy, though undisclosed, losses in men and equipment.
In 2024, Russia was invaded for the first time since the Second World War as Ukraine grabbed a slice of its western Kursk region in a surprise counter-attack on 6 August.
Russia has yet to eject Ukrainian forces from Kursk despite bringing in more than 10,000 troops from its ally North Korea, according to Ukrainian, South Korean and US assessments. Russia has neither confirmed nor denied their presence.
“To sustain even the very slow advance in Ukraine, Russia has been forced to ignore the months-long occupation of part of its own territory by Ukrainian forces,” British security expert Ruth Deyermond said.
“Taking a ‘nothing to see here’ attitude to the loss of its own land is not what great powers do, particularly one so preoccupied with the idea of state sovereignty.”
Deyermond, in a long thread posted on X, suggested Putin’s efforts to portray Russia as a leading world power were also undermined by the toppling of its chief Middle East ally, former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, and its increasing dependence on China.
Mr Putin, the longest-serving ruler of Russia since Josef Stalin, said on 19 December that under his leadership the country had moved back from “the edge of the abyss” and rebuffed threats to its sovereignty.
With hindsight, he said, he should not have waited until February 2022 before launching his “special military operation” in Ukraine, the term he still uses for the full-scale invasion of Russia’s neighbour.
Watch: Russia and Ukraine swap 150 prisoners in tearful exchange
14:00
Alex Croft
Putin makes three-word pledge to Russia’s soldiers in New Year address
13:19
Alex Croft
In his address to the nation on Tuesday (31 December), the Russian President praised his country’s military in its war against Ukraine, telling soldiers, “We believe in you.”
Putin ensured Russians that everything will be fine as the country enters the third year of fighting in Ukraine.
Report: Ukraine halts Russian gas supplies to Europe after transit deal expires
13:17
Alex Croft
Ukraine has halted Russian gas supplies to European customers that pass through the country, almost three years into Moscow’s all-out invasion.
At a summit in Brussels last month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed that Kyiv would not allow Russia to use the transits to earn “additional billions ... on our blood, on the lives of our citizens.” But he briefly held open the possibility of the gas flows continuing if payments to Russia were withheld until the war ends.
Ukraine’s energy minister, Herman Halushchenko, confirmed on Wednesday morning that Kyiv had stopped the transit “in the interest of national security.”
“This is a historic event. Russia is losing markets and will incur financial losses. Europe has already decided to phase out Russian gas, and (this) aligns with what Ukraine has done today,” Halushchenko said in an update on the Telegram messaging app.
Sam Rkaina reports:
Ukraine-Russia war map: Where are Putin’s forces making gains on the frontline as 2025 begins?
11:36
Alex Croft
By the time February 2025 arrives, marking three years since Vladimir Putin launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the situation on the front line could look very different.
Currently, Russian forces are advancing in the east, slowly but surely, and they are shrinking Ukraine’s partial hold of the border region of Kursk.
That the Russians haven’t been more successful is a testament, above all else, to the resilience of Ukraine’s troops on the ground, many of whom have been fighting continuously for years. Dysfunction in the Russian military, with Mr Putin as its de facto commander-in-chief, is another.
But US president Joe Biden has sent the final military package of his tenure to Ukraine, ending the support (for now) of Kyiv’s most heavily-armed ally. US president-elect Donald Trump will soon re-enter the White House on the promise of ending the fighting altogether, even if that potentially means rewarding Mr Putin for his illegal land grab.
Tom Watling reports:
Zelensky thanks Ukrainian people in New Year’s address
11:15
Alex Croft
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has thanked the Ukrainian people and soldiers for their steadfastness in a New Year’s address, as the war approaches its fourth year.
He wrote on X: “Today, I address all those who value Ukraine, cherish their state, and lovingly call it ‘Mine’.
“Those who cannot imagine themselves without Ukraine, no matter where they are. All those who have been fighting for it – so steadfastly and so bravely – for more than 1,000 days. This is you – our people. Ukrainians – men and women.
“To all of whom I am grateful to for this year, 2024. Our people who endure all difficulties with dignity. People for whom being citizens of Ukraine is a source of pride.
“For me, it is an honor to be the President of such people – Ukrainians who prove that no cruise missile can defeat a nation that has wings.”
One person killed in drone attack on Kyiv
10:52
Alex Croft
One person was killed in the drone attack on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, city officials have said.
Two floors of a residential building were partially destroyed in the strike, before a woman’s body was pulled from the debris, officials added.
Firefighters tackled a blaze caused by the drone strike on Wednesday morning, which also injured six other people.
In pictures: Firefighters respond to major Russian drone attack
10:31
Alex Croft
09:26
Sam Rkaina
Russia launched a drone strike on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early on Wednesday, wounding at least six people and damaging buildings in two districts, city officials said.
Explosions boomed across the morning sky as Ukraine’s air force warned of drones approaching the city and Mayor Vitali Klitschko said air defences were repelling an enemy attack.
Two floors of a residential building were partially destroyed in the strike, Klitschko said. Photos posted by the State Emergency Service showed firefighters dousing a gutted corner of a building and helping elderly victims.
Debris from downed drones also damaged a non-residential building in another neighbourhood, Klitschko added.
“This is yet another reminder to the world that Russian aggression knows no holidays or days off,” Yulia Svyrydenko, Ukraine’s first deputy prime minister, wrote on X shortly after the morning attack.
Kyiv’s military said it had shot down 63 out of 111 drones launched by Russia overnight across various regions of Ukraine. Another 46 had been downed by electronic jamming, it added.
Russia has carried out regular air strikes on Ukrainian towns and cities far behind the front line of its nearly three-year-old invasion.
Hundreds of soldiers freed in the latest prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine
08:02
Arpan Rai
Russia and Ukraine have exchanged prisoners of war in the latest such swap that saw the release of hundreds of captives and was brokered with the help of the United Arab Emirates, officials said.
Volodymyr Zelensky said 189 Ukrainian prisoners, including military personnel, border guards and national guards — along with two civilians — were freed. He thanked the UAE for helping negotiate the exchange.
Russia’s defence ministry said that 150 Russian soldiers were freed from captivity as part of the exchange in which each side released 150 people.
The reason for the discrepancy in numbers wasn’t immediately clear.
Austria says gas supply is secure after Ukraine transit ends
07:53
Arpan Rai
Austria was ready for the ending of a gas transit deal between Russia and Ukraine and supplies to the country continue through other sources such as feed-in points in Germany or Italy and from storage facilities, the government said today.
“We did our homework and were well prepared for this scenario,” Austrian energy minister Leonore Gewessler said in a statement. “Austria is no longer dependent on gas from Russia - and that is a good thing,” she added.
Photos: Ukrainians spend last day of 2024 in shelter
06:52
Arpan Rai
Russia launches New Year drone strike on Kyiv, officials say
06:42
Arpan Rai
Russia launched a drone strike on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early today, wounding at least three people and damaging buildings in two districts, city officials said.
Explosions boomed across the morning sky shortly after Ukraine’s air force warned of drones approaching the city.
Mayor Vitali Klitschko said air-defences were repelling an enemy attack, and that two floors of a residential building had been partially destroyed in the strike.
Debris had also damaged a non-residential premise in another neighbourhood, he said.
Russia has carried out regular air strikes on Ukrainian towns and cities far behind the front line of its nearly three-year-old invasion.
Trump ‘willing, capable of achieving peace and ending Putin’s aggression’, says Zelensky
06:37
Arpan Rai
Volodymyr Zelensky has said he has no doubt incoming US president Donald Trump is capable of achieving peace.
“I thank all Americans for proving these words with deeds. I have no doubt that the new American president is willing and capable of achieving peace and ending Putin’s aggression. He understands that the first is impossible without the second. Because this is not a street fight where you have to calm down both sides,” he said in his New Year video greeting.
He added: “This is the full-scale aggression of a mad state against a civilized one. And I believe that we, together with the United States, are capable of exerting that force. Of compelling Russia into a just peace. That means not forgetting, and not erasing everything Russia has done. Bucha, Olenivka, Avdiivka, all our destroyed towns and villages.”
Mr Zelensky also thanked the US administration for providing a wide array of critical military equipment, including 39 multiple-launch rocket systems, 301 Howitzer artillery weapons, and over 300 million units of ammunition.
Mr Zelensky also recalled conversations with outgoing president Joe Biden, and “everyone who supports us in the United States”.
Russian man arrested for running LGBTQ+ travel agency found dead
06:07
Tom Watling
Ukraine hits Russian oil depot in Smolensk region
05:53
Arpan Rai
The Ukrainian military said its forces had hit a Russian oil depot in the western Smolensk region, setting fire to tanks storing oil products.
Ukraine‘s general staff said on the Telegram app that the depot was used for military purposes. It did not specify the weapon used for the strike but said it was carried out in cooperation with drone forces.
Smolensk region governor Vasily Anokhin said that the attack caused a fuel spill and fire.
According to his statement on Telegram, 10 Ukrainian drones were shot down by Russian air defences but the wreckage of one of them fell on the oil facility.
Ukraine has staged numerous attacks on Russian oil storage facilities and refineries.
Editorial: If the West gives an inch when it comes to Ukraine, Putin will take a mile
05:09
Arpan Rai
It is 25 years since Vladimir Putin was handed power on 31 December 1999 when Boris Yeltsin resigned, and it is something he has kept an increasingly iron grip on ever since.
While the Russian leader has repeatedly clashed with the West, Putin’s near three-year invasion of Ukraine – and the staunch support allies like Britain and the US have given Kyiv – has only intensified his threats and bellicose rhetoric.
As we move into 2025, the West has to be prepared to keep drawing Putin’s ire. Donald Trump, the US president-elect, has suggested he wants a swift resolution to the war in Ukraine once he takes office in January, and both Kyiv and Moscow have opened the door to peace talks. The UK and nations across Europe are aware that if Putin is given an inch, he will try to take a mile – so continued support for Ukraine on the battlefield is crucial.
The latest example of the consequences of Putin’s war in Ukraine beyond its borders was the first of the major air crashes in the last week – a few days before the tragic scenes in South Korea. On Christmas Day, an Azerbaijan Airlines plane flying from Baku to Grozny in the Russian region of Chechnya diverted across the Caspian Sea and crash-landed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, killing 38 of the 67 people on board.
Photos: Christmas celebrations in war-hit Ukraine
05:03
Arpan Rai
War in Ukraine: A snapshot of 2024 military warfare
04:33
Arpan Rai
Russian forces in 2024 advanced in Ukraine at the fastest rate since 2022, the war’s first year, and control about a fifth of the country. But the gains have come at the cost of heavy, though undisclosed, losses in men and equipment.
In 2024, Russia was invaded for the first time since the Second World War as Ukraine grabbed a slice of its western Kursk region in a surprise counter-attack on 6 August.
Russia has yet to eject Ukrainian forces from Kursk despite bringing in more than 10,000 troops from its ally North Korea, according to Ukrainian, South Korean and US assessments. Russia has neither confirmed nor denied their presence.
“To sustain even the very slow advance in Ukraine, Russia has been forced to ignore the months-long occupation of part of its own territory by Ukrainian forces,” British security expert Ruth Deyermond said.
“Taking a ‘nothing to see here’ attitude to the loss of its own land is not what great powers do, particularly one so preoccupied with the idea of state sovereignty.”
Deyermond, in a long thread posted on X, suggested Putin’s efforts to portray Russia as a leading world power were also undermined by the toppling of its chief Middle East ally, former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, and its increasing dependence on China.
Mr Putin, the longest-serving ruler of Russia since Josef Stalin, said on 19 December that under his leadership the country had moved back from “the edge of the abyss” and rebuffed threats to its sovereignty.
With hindsight, he said, he should not have waited until February 2022 before launching his “special military operation” in Ukraine, the term he still uses for the full-scale invasion of Russia’s neighbour.
Russian missile and drone attack on Ukraine hits multiple targets
04:26
Arpan Rai
Russia launched an aerial attack on Ukraine striking the capital and other regions with multiple missiles and drones.
Ukraine’s air force reported a ballistic missile threat at 3am (1am GMT), with at least two explosions heard in Kyiv minutes later. Another missile alert was issued at 8am followed by at least one explosion in the city. Missile debris fell in the Darnytskyi district of the capital with no reports of casualties or damage, the local administration said.
Authorities in the northeastern Sumy region reported strikes near the city of Shostka, where the mayor, Mykola Noha, said 12 residential buildings had been damaged as well as two educational facilities. He said some “social infrastructure objects” were destroyed, without providing detail.
The air force also reported missiles and drones targeting several other regions of Ukraine. In Moscow, the Russian defence ministry said that its forces successfully struck a Ukrainian air base and a gunpowder factory.
Around half of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure has been destroyed during the war, and rolling electricity blackouts are common and widespread.
Putin has ruled Russia for 25 years – but what has he really got to show for it?
04:18
Arpan Rai
When Boris Yeltsin suddenly resigned as Russia’s first post-communist president on New Year’s Eve, 1999, his country seemed to be spiralling downhill into economic and political disintegration. Few gave his largely unknown successor as acting president much chance of reversing the economic implosion or remaining in office for long.
The then prime minister Vladimir Putin’s media operation had already begun to portray the ex-KGB operative in stark contrast to the moribund Yeltsin as an action man. That same year the second Chechen war on the country’s southern border raged. Twenty-five years later, Vladimir Putin is still in the Kremlin but Russia is again in the grip of war on its post-Soviet periphery after last week’s downing of an airliner over Chechen airspace.
Add to the tension that Putin’s Russia has been engaged in a covert war against Ukraine since 2014, which he had turned into a full-scale invasion by early 2022 – a conflict that remains at an impasse today. As with his earlier war against Chechnya, Putin’s obduracy turned an opening military fiasco into a brutal war of attrition which Russia’s resources could win at a huge price.
Mark Almond writes:
Putin tells Russians at New Year that 'everything will be fine'
04:11
Arpan Rai
Vladimir Putin told Russians in a New Year address that the country would move forward with confidence in 2025, though he offered no specific promises on the economy or the war in Ukraine.
At a time when many ordinary people are worried about rising prices and the central bank’s 21 per cent interest rate is squeezing businesses and homebuyers, Putin reassured Russians that their wellbeing was his top priority.
He framed Russia’s challenges as part of a wider historic mission, evoking past victories including its role in the defeat of Nazi Germany in the second World War.
Russia, he said, had overcome trials, achieved major goals and strengthened its unity in the first quarter of the 21st century – a period coinciding exactly with his time as its paramount leader.
“And now, on the threshold of the new year, we are thinking about the future. We are confident that everything will be fine, we will only move forward. We know for sure that the absolute value for us was, is and will be the fate of Russia, the well-being of its citizens,” he said.
His three-and-a-half-minute seasonal message from the Kremlin was being broadcast at midnight in each of Russia’s 11 time zones, starting with Kamchatka and Chukotka in the far east.
He was speaking exactly 25 years since he first addressed the nation as its acting president after Boris Yeltsin resigned unexpectedly on the last day of 1999.
Finnish investigators find anchor drag mark on the Baltic seabed following cable damage
04:00
Tom Watling
US will be alongside Ukraine’s efforts to stop Russia, says Zelensky
03:56
Arpan Rai
Volodymy Zelensky has said no one would give peace to his country as a gift, but he believed the United States would stand alongside Kyiv as it fights to stop Russia’s 34-month invasion.
In a slick 21-minute New Year video greeting to his compatriots, Mr Zelensky also said only a strong Ukraine could secure peace and earn worldwide respect.
“We know that peace will not be given to us as a gift, but we will do everything to stop Russia and end the war, something each of us desires,” Mr Zelensky said against a backdrop of the blue-and-yellow national flag, battlefield scenes and pictures of children.
He recalled conversations with outgoing president Joe Biden, president-elect Donald Trump and “everyone who supports us in the United States”.
“I have no doubt that the new American president wants and will be able to bring peace and end (Russian president Vladimir) Putin’s aggression,” Mr Zelensky said.
“He understands that the former is impossible without the latter. Because this is not a street brawl where the two sides need to be pacified. This is a full-scale aggression by a deranged state against a civilised one. And I believe that, together with the United States, we are capable of the strength to force Russia into a just peace.”
'No heating, no light': Moldovans fear looming energy shortage as Russia halts gas supplies
03:03
Arpan Rai
On a frigid morning in Moldova’s capital, 39-year-old postal worker Petru Murzin braces for a difficult winter as he fears a looming energy shortage could leave many Moldovans with “no heating, no light”.
His concerns aren’t unfounded.
Starting today, Russia’s state-owned energy giant Gazprom is set to halt gas supplies to the European Union candidate country over an alleged $709m debt for past supplies, a figure fiercely disputed by Moldova’s pro-Western government, which has accused Moscow of weaponising energy as a political tool to destabilise the country.
“I feel that we’ve entered a crisis that is quite difficult to resolve… which worries me greatly,” Mr Murzin said in Chisinau. “Price increases are one thing, but when there is no gas at all, that’s something entirely different”.
Watch: Families in tears as Ukrainian soldiers return home after Russia prisoner of war swap
02:58
Arpan Rai
Ukrainian families sobbed as they reunited with loved ones in a prisoner of war (POW) swap with Russia on Monday, 30 December.
Among them were soldiers captured by Russia from the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol, Snake island and other parts of the front line, as well as two civilians.
Volodymyr Zelensky said the two countries exchanged 189 prisoners of war each in an exchange mediated by the United Arab Emirates.
It was the 59th POW swap since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbour in February 2022.
Mariupol defender Oleksandr Hlyshenko was in captivity for more than two years.
He waited for his release “every minute” and called the day of the exchange his “second birthday.”
Nato cannot defend Europe from Russia without the US, warn leaders
02:02
Tom Watling
Ukraine's military intelligence says North Korean troops suffer heavy battlefield losses
01:01
Tom Watling
As Trump returns to the White House – what next for Ukraine in 2025?
Tuesday 31 December 2024 23:02
Tom Watling
2024 was a year of triumphs and setbacks for Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Here's how it unfolded
Tuesday 31 December 2024 21:02
Tom Watling
Putin has ruled Russia for 25 years – but what can he show for it?
Tuesday 31 December 2024 19:33
Tom Watling
Families in tears as Ukrainian soldiers return home POW swap
Tuesday 31 December 2024 18:03
Tom Watling
In pictures: Kyiv residents take shelter in metro station amid air alerts
Tuesday 31 December 2024 16:33
Alex Croft
As Trump returns to the White House, and Putin’s forces advance – what next for Ukraine in 2025?
Tuesday 31 December 2024 16:12
Alex Croft
After nearly three years of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the future of the country’s fight against Vladimir Putin’s forces is more uncertain than ever.
Donald Trump’s sweeping victory in the US presidential race, off the back of promises to end the war in Eastern Europe in 24 hours – seemingly even if that means forcing Kyiv to cede territory to Russia – appears to spell the end of the West’s long-held policy of helping Ukraine to defeat Putin entirely. Negotiations with Russia, after years of silence, are back on the agenda.
This is causing significant stress in Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada. As Kira Rudik, a Ukrainian opposition leader, puts it: “The world needs to understand how crucial it is not to end the war on any idea of negotiating with Russia.”
Tom Watling speaks to politicians, military experts and aid workers:
Watch: Families in tears as Ukrainian soldiers return home after Russia prisoner of war swap
Tuesday 31 December 2024 15:52
Alex Croft
Ukrainian families sobbed as they reunited with loved ones in a prisoner of war (POW) swap with Russia on Monday, 30 December.
Among them were soldiers captured by Russia from the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol, Snake island and other parts of the front line, as well as two civilians.
Volodymyr Zelensky said the two countries exchanged 189 prisoners of war each in an exchange mediated by the United Arab Emirates.
Ukrainians pay £19bn taxes in 2024 as Zelensky signs tax rise bill
Tuesday 31 December 2024 15:32
Alex Croft
Ukrainian citizens and businesses paid more than 1 trillion hryvnias (£19 billion) in tax in 2024, the Finance Ministry has reported.
It comes one month after president Volodymyr Zelensky signed a major tax increase bill in November as he seeks to plug Ukraine’s budget deficit, The Kyiv Independent reported.
The bill is expected to raise an added Hr 8 billion (£150 million) this year and an extra Hr 141 billion (£2.6 billion) in 2025 for the state budget, lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniak said according to the Ukrainian outlet.
Ukraine is preparing for a budget deficit of around $35 billion (£28 billion) in 2025, prime minister Denys Shmyhal said in August, with foreign partners expected to cover around $20 billion (£16 billion) of this.
Ukraine military confirms strike on Russian oil depot
Tuesday 31 December 2024 15:13
Alex Croft
The Ukrainian military has confirmed its forces struck a Russian oil depot in the Smolensk region.
The depot was used for military purposes, Ukraine’s general staff said on Telegram. Powerful explosions and tanks with oil products were among the things which caught fire.
Earlier today, Smolensk governor Vasily Anokhin said debris from a Ukrainian drone that had been shot down caused a fuel spill and fire at an oil depot in the region, but that the situation was “under control”.
Italy allocates €13 million for Ukraine’s energy sector
Tuesday 31 December 2024 14:54
Alex Croft
Italy has announced a €13 million allocation to the Ukraine Energy Support Fund, the Italian Foreign Ministry has announced.
The ministry said it was an “important step in efforts to restore energy systems” damaged by Russian attacks.
The contribution, which it says is one of the largest by a single country, will “help stabilise electricity supplies to millions of war-affected Ukrainians at this difficult time”, it added.
“Italy’s commitment to contribute to the Fund comes at a crucial time as attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure continue. The contribution also recognises the Fund’s ability to quickly provide the equipment the country desperately needs to restore energy supplies,” the statement added.
Russian man arrested for running LGBTQ+ travel agency found dead
Tuesday 31 December 2024 14:39
Alex Croft
A Russian man arrested for allegedly running a travel agency for gay customers was found dead in custody in Moscow, rights group OVD-Info reported Sunday, amid a crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights in Russia.
According to OVD-Info, which tracks political arrests, Andrei Kotov — director of the “Men Travel” agency — faced charges of “organizing extremist activity and participating in it.”
OVD-Info said an investigator told Kotov’s lawyer that her client had died by suicide early Sunday while in pretrial detention and was found dead in his c
