A Russian strike hit a football stadium in Odesa today, injuring at least one person.
The strike hit the 34,000-seater Chornomorets Stadium. The shelling destroyed the roof, windows, and stands, according to Ukraine's State Emergency Service.
A 29-year-old woman was injured with shrapnel wounds, Odesa's regional governor Oleh Kiper said.
The attack came a day before a Ukrainian Premier League game between Chornomorets and Kolos. No official announcement has been made yet over whether the match will be postponed or cancelled.
It come as Kyiv has launched yet another strike on Russian online retailer Wildberries, as it continues a three-week campaign aiming to “bring the war home” to ordinary Russians.
The site in Yekaterinburg, 1,400 km (870 miles) east of Moscow, was the 20th Wildberries site to be attacked since 18 July. Satellite imagery shows that one-fifth of the company’s storage space has now been destroyed.
A blaze at Yekaterinburg was contained with most goods undamaged, the company said on Telegram, after a local governor said three drones had hit the roof of the logistics centre.
Key Points
- Russian strike damages football stadium in Odesa
- Kyiv strikes 20th Wildberries site in continued campaign against 'Russian Amazon'
- Putin could test Nato’s unity with attack on alliance member within next few years, report on US intel warns
- Wildberries logistics hub in Sverdlovsk region on fire, company says
- Ukraine says it struck Russian oil refineries and Black Sea vessels in long-range attacks
Zelensky wants ‘concrete results’ in developing anti-ballistic missile defence system
06:58 , Arpan Rai
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine aims to achieve “concrete results” by the end of this year in developing a European anti-ballistic missile defence system under the Freyja programme.
“Ukraine is capable of producing its missile and launcher, while our partners will provide the necessary components and critical elements – radars, sensors, and everything else required … Others spent decades developing their systems. Ukraine must do this as quickly as possible, with concrete results already in place by the turn of 2026–2027,” he said.
He also said Ukraine is accelerating work on its own ballistic missile programme, adding that tests have shown “strong potential” and that the goal is to turn it into a “real weapon”.
“We are creating all the necessary conditions to make that happen.”
Ukraine are hitting deep inside Russia – but don’t expect Putin to capitulate yet
06:25 , Arpan Rai
Russia’s war on Ukraine has entered its latest phase, with each side making use of increasing numbers of long-range munitions to strike deep into the other’s territory.
In the early summer of this year, there was a surge of optimism across the media when it became clear that Ukraine was stepping up its strikes at enormous ranges into Russia, and there was little that Moscow could do about it. But that optimism needs to be balanced against the new reality that with anti-missile interceptor systems exhausted, there is not much Ukraine itself can do to blunt Russian missile attacks. For now, those attacks sow misery and death by blasting residential areas with little warning: but next winter, they could once again target heating and power infrastructure and have an even more devastating effect on Ukraine’s ability to keep its people alive than last year.
Russia’s campaign against Ukrainian civilian infrastructure is not new: it began almost as soon as it became clear that Russia had failed in its initial objective of swiftly overrunning the country in February 2022. But its new character today results both from massive increases in the numbers of missiles and drones available to Russia, and the way they have outstripped Ukraine’s air defences.
The reluctance of allies to provide the weapons needed to take the fight to Moscow has seen the Ukrainians carry out their own campaign against their enemies’ infrastructure – but, Keir Giles writes, we know by now that Russia’s leader is happy to let his country burn.
Ukraine are hitting deep inside Russia – but don’t expect Putin to capitulate
Zelensky arrives in Serbia for first visit
06:12 , Arpan Rai
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Serbia on Friday for his first visit to the Balkan country expected to focus on economic cooperation and bids by both countries to secure European Union membership.
Zelensky posted a video on Telegram showing his arrival ahead of talks with populist president Aleksandar Vucic and other officials.
“We will be speaking about expanding economic ties between our countries, relations with the European Union, and other things that can work for our peoples, as well as security issues," Zelensky wrote.
Zelenskiy's visit will likely sour ties between Serbia and Russia, its long-time ally and main natural gas supplier.
On Thursday, Vucic said the two leaders would discuss European Union accession bids as well as economic and energy cooperation.
Watch: Trump brushes off Russia's attacks on civilian targets in Ukraine
05:35 , Arpan Rai
Russian attacks kill two in Ukraine's southeastern Dnipropetrovsk Region
05:10 , Arpan Rai
Russian strikes on Ukraine's southeastern Dnipropetrovsk Region on Friday killed two people and injured six, the regional governor said.
Oleksandr Hanzha said Russian forces had launched nearly 50 attacks on five districts in the region, deploying drones, artillery and aerial bombs.
Two people were killed near Nikopol, a frequent Russian target on the western bank of the Dnipro River, opposite the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
One of the wounded was in a serious condition, Ganzha said.
EU's Von der Leyen welcomes US Senate's backing of Russia energy sanctions
04:56 , Arpan Rai
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen welcomed a vote in the US Senate that backed sweeping Russian energy sanctions, advancing a long-delayed measure backed by the late Senator Lindsey Graham.
“Coming on the back of the EU's 21st package, I welcome the US Senate's adoption of the Graham Bill," wrote von der Leyen on X.
"Together, let us drain Russia's means to continue a war it cannot win. With hard-hitting, complementary sanctions, Europe and the United States can once again show what historic partners can achieve when we act together," added von der Leyen.
Zelensky thanks US Senate for passage of Russia sanctions bill
04:44 , Arpan Rai
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky expressed thanks to the US Senate on Friday for the passage of a bill imposing sweeping sanctions on Russia.
“We are very grateful to the US Senate and to everyone who supports Ukraine," Zelensky said on X.
"Adopting the Lindsey Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act certainly helps increase pressure on the aggressor to bring this insane Russian war against our independence and our people to an end,” he said.
Russia dismisses German drone incident as 'fabricated provocation'
04:19 , Arpan Rai
The Russian embassy in Berlin dismissed a suspected drone attack at a major German air freight hub this week as "fabricated provocation" on Friday, saying it was another example of accusations against Russia without evidence.
“The embassy is expressing its concern about a new wave of anti-Russian hysteria in Germany,” said a statement published on its website in German and Russian.
German federal prosecutors launched a probe this week into what they described as a serious attack that could have impacted foreign and domestic security.
“It is obvious that this hastily fabricated provocation only serves the interests of Kyiv and the militarist wing of the European political class,” the Russian embassy said in its statement.
Three killed in Russian strikes in Kyiv region
03:53 , Arpan Rai
A child is among three killed after Russian forces attacked the region surrounding capital Kyiv on Saturday, an official said.
Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv regional administration, said Russian strikes were recorded at three locations in the Boryspil district, near the capital.
Three more people were injured in the attack, he said.
In the capital itself, fires were reported in two districts, mayor Vitali Klitschko said, following an air raid alert.
Reuters witnesses heard several powerful explosions that shook the centre of the city.
Ukraine is chronically short of air defences capable of downing Russia's ballistic missiles.
Why Ukraine is targeting Russia’s ‘Amazon’ Wildberries with major strikes
03:00 , Alex Croft
Ukraine has hit a major logistics hub of Russian online retailer Wildberries in Yekaterinburg, east of Moscow, continuing its three-week campaign of near-nightly strikes.
At least 20 Wildberries warehouses have been attacked since July 18, sparking major fires, destroying entire warehouses of stock, and disrupting its vast logistics network across the world's largest country. A Reuters review of satellite imagery shows at least 1.18 million square metres of storage space - more than a fifth of the company's capacity - has been damaged or destroyed.
The strikes are part of a campaign by Ukraine to "bring the war home" to ordinary Russians and raise the cost to Russia of continuing the conflict that Moscow launched in February 2022.
Suha Kidwai reports:
Why Ukraine is targeting Russia’s ‘Amazon’ Wildberries with major strikes
Zelensky wants ‘concrete results’ in developing anti-ballistic missile defence system
01:30 , Alex Croft
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine aims to achieve “concrete results” by the end of this year in developing a European anti-ballistic missile defence system under the Freyja programme.
“Ukraine is capable of producing its missile and launcher, while our partners will provide the necessary components and critical elements – radars, sensors, and everything else required … Others spent decades developing their systems. Ukraine must do this as quickly as possible, with concrete results already in place by the turn of 2026–2027,” he said.
He also said Ukraine is accelerating work on its own ballistic missile programme, adding that tests have shown “strong potential” and that the goal is to turn it into a “real weapon”.
“We are creating all the necessary conditions to make that happen.”
Moscow Supreme Court considers barring anti-war part from September elections
Saturday 8 August 2026 00:00 , Alex Croft
Russia's Supreme Court said on Friday it would consider a lawsuit to bar opposition party Yabloko from contesting parliamentary elections in September, state news agency TASS is reporting.
The party is the only one which opposes Moscow's war in Ukraine.
Watch: Trump brushes off Russia's attacks on civilian targets in Ukraine: ‘We're separated by an ocean'
Friday 7 August 2026 23:01 , Alex Croft
Zelensky touches down in Serbia for first visit
Friday 7 August 2026 22:00 , Alex Croft
Volodymyr Zelensky has touched down in Serbia for his first visit to the Balkan country, Serbia’s N1 TV reported.
The Ukrainian president is expected to meet populist president Aleksandar Vucic, with his visit likely sour ties between Serbia and Russia, its long-time ally and main natural gas supplier.
On Thursday, Mr Vucic said the two leaders would discuss the bid by both countries to secure membership in the European Union as well as economic and energy cooperation.
In pictures: Russian strike hits football stadium in Odesa
Friday 7 August 2026 21:05 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Pictures show the damage to the Chornomorets Stadium, which was hit by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Odesa.
Ukraine strikes Russian oil refinery over 1,300km behind frontline, says Zelensky
Friday 7 August 2026 21:03 , Alex Croft
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Thursday that Kyiv had struck further oil facilities deep inside Russia during nighttime attacks, intensifying its strategy to cripple Moscow's wartime economy and embarrass the Kremlin.
These persistent strikes have caused fuel shortages and rattled Russians, while heartening Ukrainians who face regular Russian barrages that Kyiv's weakened air defences struggle to counter.
Zelenskyy, speaking on social media, specified two targets: a refinery in Bashkortostan, over 1,300 kilometres (800 miles) behind the eastern front line, and another in the Yaroslavl region, nearly 700 kilometres (400 miles) from the Ukrainian border.
Read the full report here:
Ukraine strikes Russian oil refinery over 1,300km behind frontline, says Zelensky
Russian strike damages football stadium in Odesa
Friday 7 August 2026 20:14 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
A Russian strike hit a football stadium in Odesa today, injuring at least one person.
The strike hit the 34,000-seater Chornomorets Stadium.
The shelling destroyed the roof, windows, and stands, according to Ukraine's State Emergency Service.
A 29-year-old woman was injured with shrapnel wounds, Odesa's regional governor Oleh Kiper said.
The attack came a day before the Ukrainian Premier League game.
Moscow says Russian forces struck two Ukrainian cargo vessels in Black Sea
Friday 7 August 2026 20:02 , Alex Croft
We’ve just heard from Moscow’s defence ministry, which says that Russian forces have struck two more cargo vessels in the Black Sea that were being used "in the interests of the Ukrainian military”.
The ministry said Russian forces also hit fuel storage facilities at the port of Pivdennyi.
The Independent has been unable to verify Moscow’s claims, but we’ll bring you more when we have it.
Two killed after Ukrainian drone strikes Crimean apartment block, says Russia-installed governor
Friday 7 August 2026 19:01 , Alex Croft
Two people have reportedly been killed after a Ukrainian drone struck an apartment building in Kerch, in Russian-controlled Crimea, on Friday.
This is according to the Russia-installed governor of Crimea Sergei Aksyonov, who was cited by Moscow’s Tass news agency.
Ukraine shares video of Russian drone 'hunting down' market vendor - ICYMI
Friday 7 August 2026 18:00 , Alex Croft
Explosive-laden drone discovered at Leipzig airport near Ukrainian Antonov cargo aircraft - report
Friday 7 August 2026 17:00 , Alex Croft
German authorities say a potentially catastrophic attack may have been narrowly prevented after an explosive-laden drone was discovered at Leipzig Airport near Ukrainian Antonov cargo aircraft, one of which was reportedly carrying military ammunition.
A classified police report, cited by German media WDR and NDR and the Suddeutsche newspaper, said one of the aircraft was loaded with military ammunition.
German interior minister Alexander Dobrindt said the bomb failed to detonate only because its detonator appeared to have been “ripped”, potentially averting a mass-casualty incident.
Investigators believe the drone carried a powerful plastic explosive, possibly Semtex, and had been modified to evade electronic detection.
Authorities are treating the case as a suspected act of “foreign powers” and part of a “professional hybrid threat scenario”.
Suspicion has fallen on Russia because Leipzig Airport serves as a key Nato and German military logistics hub and the European base for Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines.
Some German politicians, including intelligence committee member Roderich Kiesewetter, directly accused Russia of orchestrating the attempted attack, but the government has stopped short of making that allegation.
“I consider the threat to Germany posed by hybrid attacks orchestrated by Russia to be serious,” he said.
“I also believe that the attempted drone attack at Leipzig airport was a targeted hybrid attack – in other words, an attempted act of terrorism – orchestrated by Russia.”
War entering a ‘new phase’, military analyst says
Friday 7 August 2026 16:31 , Alex Croft
Military analyst Michael Clarke has said that the war is entering a “new phase”.
While Russia is making “incremental progress” and Ukraine is “hitting back locally”, he described the advances as “snail’s pace stuff”.
Speaking to Sky News, he said that the two countries are “hurting each other now to a degree that is going to push it to some sort of crisis”.
“Russia has a much greater capacity to be hurt because it hasn’t been hurt very much so far as a society.”
He said that Kyiv is “poking the bear in the eye” by escalating attacks and said that it is a “dangerous assumption” to expect Moscow to back down.
Clarke said that Putin’s “next best option” may be to “frighten” Ukraine’s European allies into reducing their support for Kyiv.
Moscow claims strikes on three Ukrainian military cargo vessels
Friday 7 August 2026 16:01 , Alex Croft
Moscow’s defence ministry has claimed strikes on three vessels used to transport Ukrainian military cargo near Ukraine's Odesa and in Chornomorsk, Interfax reported.
We’ll bring you more on the claim as we get it.
Why Ukraine is targeting Russia’s ‘Amazon’ Wildberries with major strikes
Friday 7 August 2026 15:30 , Alex Croft
Ukraine has hit a major logistics hub of Russian online retailer Wildberries in Yekaterinburg, east of Moscow, continuing its three-week campaign of near-nightly strikes.
At least 20 Wildberries warehouses have been attacked since July 18, sparking major fires, destroying entire warehouses of stock, and disrupting its vast logistics network across the world's largest country. A Reuters review of satellite imagery shows at least 1.18 million square metres of storage space - more than a fifth of the company's capacity - has been damaged or destroyed.
The strikes are part of a campaign by Ukraine to "bring the war home" to ordinary Russians and raise the cost to Russia of continuing the conflict that Moscow launched in February 2022.
Suha Kidwai reports:
Why Ukraine is targeting Russia’s ‘Amazon’ Wildberries with major strikes
Zelensky wants ‘concrete results’ in developing anti-ballistic missile defence system
Friday 7 August 2026 14:59 , Maroosha Muzaffar
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine aims to achieve “concrete results” by the end of this year in developing a European anti-ballistic missile defence system under the Freyja programme.
“Ukraine is capable of producing its missile and launcher, while our partners will provide the necessary components and critical elements – radars, sensors, and everything else required … Others spent decades developing their systems. Ukraine must do this as quickly as possible, with concrete results already in place by the turn of 2026–2027,” he said.
He also said Ukraine is accelerating work on its own ballistic missile programme, adding that tests have shown “strong potential” and that the goal is to turn it into a “real weapon”.
“We are creating all the necessary conditions to make that happen.”
Watch: Trump brushes off Russia's attacks on civilian targets in Ukraine: ‘We're separated by an ocean'
Friday 7 August 2026 14:30 , Alex Croft
Russian troops claim control of Kharkiv village, claims Moscow
Friday 7 August 2026 14:01 , Alex Croft
The Russian Defence Ministry is reporting that its have taken control of the settlement of Anyshchyne in Ukraine's Kharkiv region.
According to the RIA state news agency, the ministry added that Russian forces had struck 34 vessels used by the Ukrainian military in the past week.
These claims have not yet been verified by The Independent - we’re working to bring you more.
Putin discusses Ukraine situation with UAE president
Friday 7 August 2026 13:29 , Alex Croft
Russian president Vladimir Putin has spoken to United Arab Emirates president Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Kremlin said on Friday.
The pair discussed the situation in the Gulf, where Iranian and Omani negotiators are seeking to fix an impasse over the Strait of Hormuz.
They also discussed the war on Ukraine, with Putin expressing his gratitude to the United Arab Emirates for its role in organising exchanges of prisoners of war and detainees between Russia and Ukraine, the Kremlin said.
Sweden clears transfer of ‘shadow fleet’ cargo ship to Ukraine
Friday 7 August 2026 13:01 , Maroosha Muzaffar
Sweden’s Supreme Court has cleared the transfer of the 96-metre Russian “shadow fleet” cargo ship Caffa to Ukraine, rejecting an appeal by its owner.
Swedish police seized the vessel off Trelleborg in March after a Ukrainian request for legal assistance, Euro News reported.
Ukraine alleges the ship transported grain stolen from Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory, including a shipment from Sevastopol in July 2025.
The ship was reportedly sailing under a false Guinean flag and had 11 crew members, 10 of them Russian nationals.
More than 20 Wildberries sites attacked in less than a month
Friday 7 August 2026 12:30 , Maroosha Muzaffar
Since 18 July, around 20 Wildberries sites have been attacked, with at least 1.18 million sq m of storage space – more than a fifth of the company’s capacity – damaged or destroyed, according to Reuters’ satellite analysis.
The attacks have hit tens of thousands of sellers and franchise-run pickup points as well, the news agency reported.
One Moscow pickup-point operator said his sales had “dropped by about 50 per cent” as deliveries collapsed, forcing him to try to sell his business.
More than 3,100 Wildberries pickup points were reportedly listed for sale.
The economic fallout is also worrying Russia’s central bank and Kremlin.
Economists warn supply disruptions could fuel inflation and complicate interest-rate cuts. A source was reported as saying: “There will be a wave of bankruptcies. No one has the kind of money needed to support sellers; we’re talking hundreds of billions of roubles. That’s a significant blow to the economy.”
Wildberries says it has offered discounts, payment deferrals and compensation to more than 97,000 sellers whose stock was destroyed.
Ukraine says the attacks are intended to “bring the war home” and raise the cost of the conflict for Russia.
Wildberries to open 'partner hubs' to store goods after Ukrainian attacks
Friday 7 August 2026 12:00 , Alex Croft
Wildberries, the Russian online retailer at the heart of a three-week Ukrainian drone campaign, said on Friday that it will open new "partner hubs" to store goods.
It is the first time the company has revealed how it will attempt to compensate for the destruction of more than a fifth of its storage capacity in attacks on at least 20 of its warehouses since 18 July.
Owners and tenants of suitable premises will be able to set up a partner hub and be paid for processing, storing and dispatching goods from marketplace sellers, it said.
Kyiv strikes 20th Wildberries site in continued campaign against 'Russian Amazon'
Friday 7 August 2026 11:36 , Alex Croft
Kyiv has launched yet another strike on Russian online retailer Wildberries, as it continues a three-week campaign aiming to “bring the war home” to ordinary Russians.
The site in Yekaterinburg, 1,400 km (870 miles) east of Moscow, was the 20th Wildberries site to be attacked since 18 July. Satellite imagery from Reuters news agency shows that one-fifth of the company’s storage space has now been destroyed.
A blaze at Yekaterinburg was contained with most goods undamaged, the company said on Telegram, after a local governor said three drones had hit the roof of the logistics centre.
Wildberries logistics hub in Sverdlovsk region on fire, company says
Friday 7 August 2026 11:00 , Maroosha Muzaffar
A logistics hub of Russia’s leading online retailer Wildberries in the Sverdlovsk region is on fire after an attack, the company has said.
The incident is the latest in a series of strikes targeting the retailer’s logistics network as Ukraine intensifies its attacks inside Russia.
Today’s attack comes just a day after another Wildberries logistics hub in Tula caught fire after a Ukrainian drone attack.
Tula regional governor Dmitry Milyayev said on Telegram on Wednesday that one person was injured.
How explosive drone found near runway at German airport sparked fears of another ‘hybrid’ Russian attack on Nato
Friday 7 August 2026 10:30 , Maroosha Muzaffar
An explosive-laden drone was found near a Ukrainian plane at the Leipzig/Halle airport in east Germany late on Tuesday, prompting a counterterrorism investigation and fears of another hybrid attack on European soil.
Airport workers discovered the drone in a restricted cargo area near the southern runway at one of Europe’s biggest cargo hubs. Flights were later suspended and several aircraft were diverted from the airport.
Most operations had resumed by Wednesday morning as one runway was reopened, but the southern strip stayed closed while analysts examined the drone and removed its detonator, according to authorities.
Read more here:
What we know about explosive drone found near runway at Leipzig airport
