VLADIMIR Putin's soldiers have been labelled "worse than ISIS" after a horrific video surfaced showing the beheading of a Ukrainian prisoner of war.
Ukrainian official Dmytro Kuleba has taken to Twitter to slam Russia over the barbaric video which is believed to be from 2022.
Kuleba said: “A horrific video of Russian troops decapitating a Ukrainian prisoner of war is circulating online.
“It’s absurd that Russia, which is worse than ISIS, is presiding over the UNSC.
“Russian terrorists must be kicked out of Ukraine and the UN and be held accountable for their crimes.”
Read our Ukraine war blog below for the latest news…
- Shanine Bruder
Ukraine’s foreign minister discusses Zelensky's Peace Formula
Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, has today spoken with his Argentine counterpart, Santiago Cafiero, regarding the ''execution of a Ukrainian POW by Russia'', as well as discussing President Zelensky's Peace Formula.
Taking to Twitter to share the details of the call, Kuleba wrote: ''During our call today, my Argentine counterpart @SantiagoCafiero condemned the execution of a Ukrainian POW by Russia and offered his condolences.
''We also discussed our bilateral agenda, Ukraine’s ties with Latin America, and @ZelenskyyUa’s Peace Formula as a way to a just peace.''
- Shanine Bruder
Ukraine denies Russia's Wagner controls 80% of Bakhmut
Ukraine's military rejected claims that Russia's Wagner group has captured more than 80% of the city of Bakhmut and said on Wednesday that Kyiv’s forces controlled “considerably” more than 20% of it in the east.
Serhiy Cherevatyi, spokesperson for the eastern military command, made the comment to Reuters a day after the head of Russia's Wagner mercenary group said that his forces were advancing in their bid to seize Bakhmut after months of fighting.
He said: ''I was just in touch with the commander of one of the brigades holding the defence of the city. And I can confidently say that Ukrainian defensive forces control a considerably larger percent of Bakhmut's territory.''
It comes after Wagner head Yevgeny Prigozhin said on Tuesday his forces controlled most of Bakhmut including the whole administrative centre, factories, warehouses, and municipality buildings.
- Shanine Bruder
UK ‘cracking down on oligarch enablers’
James Cleverly has announced sanctions on individuals and companies with financial links to Russian oligarchs Roman Abramovich and Alisher Usmanov.
The UK’s foreign secretary said: “Today we are cracking down on oligarch enablers, including the financial fixers for Abramovich and Usmanov.
“We are closing the net on the Russian elite and those who try to help them hide their money for war.
“We won’t stop until Putin does.”
- Shanine Bruder
Russian losses exceed 180,000
According to Ukraine’s armed forces, Russian losses have now exceeded 180,000 after a further 730 troops were killed within the past 24 hours.
Russian forces also lost a further five APV and five artillery systems.
- Shanine Bruder
WATCH: Stacey Dooley follows three Ukrainian civilians training with British soldiers
The British Ministry of Defence has today shared a clip showing television presenter and journalist, Stacey Dooley, following three Ukrainian civilians training with British soldiers to fight in the war against Russia.
Taking to Twitter, the MoD wrote: ''The wait is over… tune in to @BBCiPlayer now or watch on @bbcthree at 9pm today to see how the @BritishArmy have trained Ukrainian civilians to become a lethal and survivable force.''
Take a look below.
- Shanine Bruder
Ukraine’s foreign minister speaks with Bogdan Aurescu
Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, has spoken with his Romanian counterpart, Bogdan Aurescu, after a video circulated on social media showing Putin’s troops beheading a Ukrainian.
Taking to Twitter, Kuleba wrote: ''I spoke with my Romanian counterpart @BogdanAurescu who condemned the execution of a Ukrainian prisoner of war as well as other Russian atrocities.
''We discussed a number of bilateral and regional issues aimed at enhancing security in the Black Sea region and beyond.''
- Shanine Bruder
Which countries are members of Nato?
In 1949, there were 12 founding members of the Alliance.
These were: Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Other member countries who have joined since are:
- Greece and Turkey (1952)
- Germany (1955),
- Spain (1982),
- Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland (1999),
- Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia (2004)
- Albania and Croatia (2009)
- Montenegro (2017)
- North Macedonia (2020)
- Finland (2023)
Finland joined the global military alliance only last week, with Sweden expected to be the next nation to join.
Russian shelling in Nikopol injures four civilians
Russian shelling in the residential area of Nikopol on Wednesday, April 12, has injured four civilians, according to Governor Serhii Lysak.
Rescue teams were present at the scene.
The Russian shelling damaged 13 houses, two farm buildings, and a car, the Governor added.
Nikopol sits across the Dnipro River from the city of Enerhoda -built around Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant and occupied by Russian forces since March 4, 2022.
Russia has used the plant as a base to launch attacks on Ukraine.
What is Nato and what does it stand for?
Nato, or the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, is an intergovernmental military alliance established in 1949.
Nato was founded after World War II, mainly to block Soviet expansion into Europe.
It was formed with the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty in 1949 by 12 member states.
Since then it has expanded to 31 member states, with Finland added to that list this week.
The organisation is considered to be the largest and most powerful military alliance in history.
As part of Nato’s policies, an attack on one of its members is considered an attack on all.
These policies are known as Article 4 and Article 5.
- Shanine Bruder
Who controls what in Ukraine?
The British Ministry of Defence has shared a look at the current state of the Ukrainian battlefield.
Take a look below.
- Louis Allwood
Putin rumoured to be getting chemo, leaked Pentagon docs claim
Putin is allegedly undergoing chemotherapy and his inner circle could be using his suspected ill health to plot against him, according to leaked Pentagon docs.
The highly-sensitive treasure trove of US spy documents that surfaced on social media last week constitute one of the worst intelligence breaches in US history and fuel the fire of speculation concerning Putin's deteriorating health.
As the US scrambles to identify the suspects of the intelligence leak, around the world people are learning just how deeply Washington has infiltrated the upper echelons of Russian power and the country's daily input to the war in Ukraine.
The 100 pages of stunning information include dangerous revelations of Ukraine's planned offensive and the awkward and spiky reports that the US has been spying on key allies.
Importantly, they reveal sensitive information on the Russia's top power-brokers.
Caught up in all of the mayhem is a "top secret" page containing the bombshell rumour that high-ranking Kremlin officials intend to "throw" the war in Ukraine as a ploy to "sabotage" Putin.
The alleged plan is hinged on Putin being incapacitated while receiving chemotherapy treatment.
- Louis Allwood
EU will hold Russia accountable for war crimes
The EU has pledged it will hold Russia to account for war crimes after a video emerged online of Russian soldiers beheading a Ukrainian prisoner of war.
EU spokesperson, Nabila Massrali said: "We don’t have more information on the veracity of the video.
"Having said that, if confirmed, this is yet another brutal reminder about the inhumane nature of the Russian aggression."
- Louis Allwood
UK 'cracking down on oligarch enablers'
James Cleverly has announced sanctions on individuals and companies with financial links to Russian oligarchs Roman Abramovich and Alisher Usmanov.
The UK's foreign secretary said: "Today we are cracking down on oligarch enablers, including the financial fixers for Abramovich and Usmanov.
"We are closing the net on the Russian elite and those who try to help them hide their money for war.
"We won't stop until Putin does."
- Louis Allwood
Joe Biden and Rishi Sunak expected to discuss the war in Ukraine
US President Joe Biden and Rishi Sunak are expected to discuss the war in Ukraine as they meet in Belfast today.
The US national security council’s Europe director, Amanda Sloat, said the focus will be Northern Ireland however they will be touching on the war in Ukraine.
She said: "I expect the leaders will also have the opportunity to touch base on the latest developments in Ukraine including our continuing joint efforts to support the people in Ukraine."
- Louis Allwood
Putin takes drastic measures to stop Russian's dodging conscription
Vladimir Putin has taken drastic measures to stop Russian's dodging the military conscription as his forces losses continue to mount on the front line.
Putin's parliament has approved a move to send conscription letters via email and other online means to prevent Russian's from avoiding the notices that were previously sent out to their work.
It comes as the Ministry of Defence has refused to deny claims that the UK has troops on the ground in Ukraine after US "top secret" documents were leaked online.
According to one of the documents that appeared online, it is claimed that the UK is among many other Western allies that have military special forces operating inside Ukraine.
The US government are continuing to investigate the source of the "top secret" document leak; with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin claiming they will “turn over every rock”.
- Louis Allwood
Canada pledges new military aid to Ukraine
Canada’s Justin Trudeau has pledged a new wave of military aid to Ukraine.
Canada will send 21,000 assault rifles, 38 machine guns and 2.4m rounds of ammunition.
Trudeau also confirmed Canada plans to place a new wave of sanctions on Russia.
- Louis Allwood
Joe Biden speaks with family of imprisoned journalist
President Joe Biden has spoken with the family of Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter arrested by the Kremlin.
“We appreciate President Biden’s call to us today, assuring us that the US government is doing everything in its power to bring him home as quickly as possible,” the family said in a statement.
Gershkovich was arrested after being accused of espionage, a charge strongly denied by the journalist.
Ahead of his trip to Northern Ireland, Biden described the arrest as “totally illegal”.
- Louis Allwood
Ukraine's foreign minister compares Russia to ISIS
Ukraine's foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, compared Russian fighters to Islamic State after a video circulated on social media showing Putin's troops beheading a Ukrainian.
Kuleba said: "A horrific video of Russian troops decapitating a Ukrainian prisoner of war is circulating online.
"It’s absurd that Russia, which is worse than ISIS, is presiding over the UNSC.
"Russian terrorists must be kicked out of Ukraine and the UN and be held accountable for their crimes."
- Louis Allwood
Number of Ukrainians to move to Poland reaches 11 million
More than 11 million Ukrainians have fled to Poland since Putin launched his bloodthirsty invasion last year, the Polish EU representative revealed on Twitter.
Of these 11 million, approximately 87 per cent are women and children.
“All those fleeing the war will find shelter and all the help they need in Poland,” the tweet added.
- Louis Allwood
Nearly 8,500 confirmed civilian deaths in Ukraine
Almost 8,500 civilians have been killed by Russia‘s war in Ukraine, the Office of the United Nations high commissioner for human rights (OHCHR) confirmed.
Many thousands more unverified deaths are expected to come to light.
Between February 24 2022, when Kyiv launched its illegal invasion, and April 9 2023, OHCHR recorded 8,490 people lost their lives, with a further 14,244 injured.
The UN body released a statement saying: “OHCHR believes the actual figures are considerably higher, as the receipt of information from some locations where intense hostilities have been going on has been delayed and many reports are still pending corroboration.”
OHCHR has repeatedly described its figures as “the tip of the iceberg”.
- Louis Allwood
'Don't expect it to be forgotten'
Volodymyr Zelensky has released a video message after videos circulated on social media which appeared to show Ukrainian soldiers beheaded by Russian forces.
Zelensky said: "There is something that noone in the world can ignore. How easily these beasts kill. This video, the execution of a Ukrainian captive. This is a video of Russia as it is. What kind of people there are.
"There are no people for them. A son, a brother, a husband, someone’s child. This is a video of Russia just trying to make that the new norm. Such a habit of destroying life.
"This is not an accident. This is not an episode. This was the case earlier. This was the case in Bucha. Thousands of times. Everyone must react. Every leader.
"Don’t expect it to be forgotten. That time will pass. We are not going to forget anything. Neither are we going to forgive the murderers. There will be legal responsibility for everything. The defeat of terror is necessary."
- Louis Allwood
Russian losses exceed 180,000
According to Ukraine's armed forces, Russian losses have now exceeded 180,000 after a further 730 troops were killed within the past 24 hours.
Russian forces also lost a further five APV and five artillery systems.
- Louis Allwood
Russia will not 'tolerate any pressure' from the US over Gershkovich
Russia's deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov said that they "will not tolerate any pressure" from the US over Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.
The Russian added that the US' claim that he is “wrongfully detained” meant nothing to them Reuters reports, citing Russia’s Tass news agency.
Tass quoted Ryabkov as saying: “We will not tolerate any attempts to pressure us, and it has no significance what status they assign to this person in Washington.
"We will act in accordance with our own internal needs, norms and laws that apply in this situation, and nothing more."
- Louis Allwood
Pictured: Putin unleashes ‘new mystery intercontinental missile’
Putin has unleashed a mysterious new nuclear missile as Joe Biden makes a historic trip to Europe.
Spectacular video shows the night time launch of the powerful rocket believed to be a Topol-ME – also known as the Yars-E – from a test firing range.
The launch coincided with the arrival of President Joe Biden in Northern Ireland, where he was greeted by Rishi Sunak.
- Louis Allwood
Putin facing fresh health problems
Russia's Vladimir Putin is facing fresh health concerns as the brutal dictator suffers "blurred vision" and a "numb tongue", reports claim.
Putin, who reportedly travels nowhere without a team of doctors due to his ailing health, has suffered "severe pain in his head, blurred vision, and numbness of the tongue,'' reports the General SVR Telegram channel.
The Russian outlet, which has made several claims about Putin's failing health since he launched his brutal war in Ukraine, added the despot has suffered ''partial loss of sensation in his right arm and leg".
Putin's declining health has allegedly left his family "panicked" as they fear his "sudden death" could be on the horizon.
These fresh health concerns come after Spanish publication Marca claimed the 70-year-old is battling both the early stages of Parkinson's disease and cancer.
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