Russia strikes Ukraine (Kyiv, Kharkiv)

In a major overnight attack, Russian forces struck multiple cities across Ukraine, killing at least nine people and wounding dozens. In Kharkiv, a repeated strike killed five rescue workers who were responding to an earlier fire. In Kyiv, the attack damaged the historic Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra (Monastery of the Caves), a UNESCO World Heritage site, setting its cathedral roof ablaze. Ukrainian officials condemned the attack as deliberate targeting of cultural heritage and Christian shrines. The strikes came hours after a phone call between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in which Trump offered to help end the war. Separately, Ukraine continued its own long-range drone attacks on Russian industrial and energy infrastructure, including a chemical plant and fuel storage facilities. In international developments, the UK intercepted a Russian shadow fleet tanker in the English Channel, arresting an Indian national on suspicion of sanctions offences. Bulgaria also announced it would stop direct state-to-state arms supplies to Ukraine, though private industry exports can continue. The attack on the monastery drew particular outrage, with Ukrainian officials calling Putin a barbarian and the head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine labelling him the 'Kremlin Antichrist'. The UN cultural agency UNESCO said it was monitoring the situation. The war, now in its fourth year since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, shows no signs of abating, with both sides striking deep into each other's territory.