As the war enters its 801st day, here are the main developments.
Here is the situation on Sunday May 5, 2024:
Struggle
- At least two people died after Russia launched several attacks on Kharkiv, including a 49-year-old civilian in Slobozhanske, a village just northeast of the city.
- Four other people were injured in the Kharkiv attack, including a 13-year-old injured by falling debris. A two-story civilian building was damaged and set on fire, officials said.
- In the Black Sea port of Odessa, three people were injured after Russia launched rocket attacks on “civilian infrastructure,” officials said.
- Ukraine, meanwhile, said it shot down 13 Shahed drones targeting Dnipro and Kharkiv, as well as a Russian Su-25 fighter-bomber over the eastern Donetsk region. An electricity substation in Dnipro was damaged during drone attacks.
- Russia launched eight missiles and nearly 70 guided aerial bombs in total, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
- Russian state agency RIA Novosti claimed troops struck a drone warehouse in Kharkiv that had been used by Ukrainian troops overnight.
- A major fire has ravaged a warehouse on the outskirts of the city of Simferopol in Crimea, annexed by Russia, Russian officials said. It’s unclear what exactly was stored in the warehouse, but several emergency crews were dispatched to put it out.
- Five people were injured and hospitalized in Belgorod, Russia, after a large explosion on Saturday, officials said. Around thirty residential buildings were damaged. It is not clear what caused the explosions. Russian journalists on Telegram channels speculated that a bomb intended to be thrown at Ukraine had exploded by mistake.
Policy
- Russia has opened a criminal case against Zelensky and placed him on a wanted list, officials said. Ukrainian officials reacting to the move called the decision “meaningless” and reminded Moscow that Russian President Vladimir Putin is on the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) wanted list.
- A Moscow spokesperson said separately that Russia would respond with “asymmetric measures” to the “hostile line” drawn by the Baltic countries of Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, which led them to cut ties with Russia. Russia, which once enjoyed considerable influence over them. .
- Last week, Estonia accused Russia of violating international airspace regulations by interfering with GPS signals. NATO officials also said last week that the Baltic countries were among those “deeply concerned” about activities they describe as “Russian espionage” on their soil.
Economy
- New measures by Ukraine’s central bank aimed at easing severe restrictions imposed on businesses after the Russian invasion will come into force on May 14. Restrictions on imports of goods and services and foreign exchange transfers will be among those to be eased.
