LIVE – War in Ukraine: Viktor Orban calls on Volodymyr Zelensky for “ceasefire” with Russia

Here’s what to remember at 7am today:

◾ Russia says it has captured two new villages in eastern Ukraine. According to the Defense Ministry’s daily report yesterday, Moscow’s forces captured the village of Novopokhrovske in Donetsk region (east) and Chebova Novoselivka in Kharkiv region (northeast).

◾ In this context, Ukrainian authorities announced the evacuation of more than 700 residents of Doretsk, but nearly 5,000 people remain in the city, and “many of them are trying to leave,” as indicated in Telegram, the national police. The city, untouched by hostilities until recently, is a critical barrier to access to Kramatorsk, the Kremlin’s ultimate objective in the Donbass.

◾ According to the Ukrainian prosecutor’s office, two elderly women were killed and eight others injured in a Russian bombardment using Hurricane rockets in the Ukrainian city of Donetsk region, which damaged an administrative building and houses.

◾ On the Russian side, Ukrainian strikes have caused power and running water cuts in the border region of Belgorod and could affect others, according to local officials. The region’s governor said several Ukrainian drone strikes hit energy infrastructure and homes. According to the same source, a four-year-old girl was killed and seven others were injured. Officials in neighboring Kursk and Voronezh regions hinted that strike after strike was possible.