All posts tagged: Russias

Ukraine attacks pressure point in Russia’s economy

Ukraine attacks pressure point in Russia’s economy

Published by Sam Flores

Smoke rises as firefighters work to extinguish a fire at Wildberries logistics hub following a Ukrainian drone attack in the Ryazan region of Russia on July 29, 2026. At least six people were reportedly injured and fires broke out at local industrial plants as a result of the strike. Ukraine Online Telegram Channel | Anadolu | Getty Images Ukraine’s drone attacks on Russia’s biggest online retailer, Wildberries, have ratcheted up the pressure on Moscow’s wartime economy, with Kyiv seeking to force President Vladimir Putin back to the negotiating table after nearly 4½ years of war. Ukraine has been targeting major logistics centers, such as Russia’s Amazon-style retail giant, as part of a push to severely disrupt the country’s supply chains and increase the financial burden facing Russian banks and businesses. It marks a significant change in approach for Ukrainian forces, following months of long-range drone strikes targeting Russian energy infrastructure. Wildberries evacuated a warehouse in the central Russian city of Ryazan on Wednesday morning, the company said, after Ukrainian drones struck several industrial facilities. The …

Drone Attacks Kill Three, Target Bus in Russia’s Belgorod Region

Drone Attacks Kill Three, Target Bus in Russia’s Belgorod Region

Published by Sam Flores

July 28 (Reuters) – Ukrainian drone strikes ⁠killed ⁠three people on ⁠Tuesday in Russia’s border region of Belgorod ​and 19 more were injured in an attack on ‌a bus denounced by ‌the Foreign Ministry in Moscow. Regional authorities said ⁠a ⁠drone strike on a business in a village near ​the border killed two people. Another person was killed in an attack on a town outside the region’s ​main city, also called Belgorod. The bus came under fire ⁠in ⁠the town of Shebekino, ⁠near ​the Ukrainian border, and all but one of those ​injured were sent ⁠to hospital for treatment. Moscow has accused Ukraine of staging systematic attacks on buses in different Russian regions. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said the ⁠latest strike showed Ukraine was directing attacks on public transport “with ⁠a maniacal persistence, taking revenge on ordinary people for growing failures at the front.” Russian-installed authorities in occupied parts of eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region said five people were injured on Tuesday in what they said was a Ukrainian drone strike on a bus. …

Humiliation for Putin as drones unleash new apocalyptic strikes on ‘Russia’s Amazon’ | World | News

Humiliation for Putin as drones unleash new apocalyptic strikes on ‘Russia’s Amazon’ | World | News

Published by Sam Flores

Ukraine is suspected to have hit two major logistics centres for “Russia’s Amazon” overnight, marking the latest successful drone attack striking into the heart of Vladimir Putin’s country. The devastating drone strikes left the Wildberries online marketplace hubs ablaze in St Petersburg and Crimea. Another strike was reported in the Tver region amid a mass failure by Putin’s air defences during the most intense Ukrainian overnight attack of the war. Major flight delays hit St Petersburg as black smoke rose from the Wildberries strikes in Shushary and Utkina Zavod, likely causing billions of pounds of damage. The company, which handles 52% of all Russian online orders, suspended its operations at these two hubs. The Wildberries hub in Tver was also hit, bringing the total for the online marketplace to nine in recent days, with several completely destroyed. Separately, Ukraine used its own Flamingo missiles to strike the key defence plant Avitek in the Kirov region. There were fears of multiple casualties among workers at the Kirov plant after reports that no evacuation alert had been …

Russia’s Amazon-style giant is in Ukraine’s crosshairs

Russia’s Amazon-style giant is in Ukraine’s crosshairs

Published by Sam Flores

Firefighters drive past the smoke of a fire at the Russian e-commerce firm Wildberries’ logistics complexes in the town of Elektrostal outside Moscow on July 18, 2026. A Ukrainian drone attack on two logistics centres in Russia killed eight people and injured 24, officials said on July 18, 2026. Tatyana Makeyeva | Afp | Getty Images Ukraine has ratcheted up its attacks on Russia’s Amazon-style retail giant Wildberries, signaling a new phase in the war as Kyiv seeks to inflict fresh pain on the Russian economy. Ukrainian Defense Forces have struck major logistics centers on Russian territory over the past week, including five facilities belonging to Wildberries in the period from Saturday through to Wednesday. The attacks, which follow months of drone strikes on Russian oil depots and refineries, appear designed to severely disrupt Moscow’s supply chains and increase the financial burden facing the country’s businesses and state budget. Wildberries is Russia’s biggest online retailer and its equivalent of U.S. e-commerce giant Amazon. Founded in 2004, the company currently employs some 48,000 people. “Ukraine has …

‘I was Russia’s Michael McIntyre – but I’ve now fled Putin and may never go back’

‘I was Russia’s Michael McIntyre – but I’ve now fled Putin and may never go back’

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter With his own sitcom, a thriving stand-up career and various films in the works, Sasha Nezlobin was one of the biggest comedy names in Russia. But in the space of just a few months, he went from writing a new show to fleeing his home country and the wrath of Vladimir Putin. In February 2022, the comedian found himself frantically packing a suitcase to escape Moscow with his family. He had criticised Russia’s prosecution of those speaking out against the war with Ukraine – and Nezlobin, his wife and their young daughter were headed for the last direct flight to New York before Europe and North America closed their airspace to Russian planes. “At the airport, the lady at the check-in counter asked me, ‘Are you leaving forever?’” Nezlobin says. “It was a really honest conversation and I told her, ‘I …

Project ‘Afrika’: Inside Russia’s propaganda machine – The Observers

Project ‘Afrika’: Inside Russia’s propaganda machine – The Observers

Published by Sam Flores

After a leak of confidential documents revealed how Russian agents have been placing hundreds of articles in French-speaking media outlets in West and Central Africa, FRANCE 24 travelled to Dakar, Senegal, to investigate this secret operation. “When you read articles like this, you definitely get the impression they are intended to manipulate opinion,” says Ibrahima Lissa Faye, the Head of Publication at the Senegalese media outlet PressAfrik. He learned from our team last March that his news site had published 13 articles featuring Russian propaganda.  These 13 articles are part of a vast Russian influence campaign on the African continent. A leak of confidential documents revealed the existence of “Project Afrika”, a Russian operation aimed at using African online media outlets to spread Russia’s strategic agenda – from anti-France and anti-Ukraine positions to blatant disinformation.  644 articles published, $300,000 spent in just a few months  Pan-African media outlet The Continent received these leaked documents, which were then analysed by a consortium of media outlets including FRANCE 24 and led by Forbidden Stories. The documents belong to a …

Project ‘Afrika’: Inside Russia’s propaganda machine – The Observers

‘Project Afrika’: Inside Russia’s propaganda machine – Reporters

Published by Sam Flores

This week in Reporters: a special report by FRANCE 24’s The Observers. After a leak of confidential documents revealed how Russian agents have been planting hundreds of articles in French-speaking media outlets in West and Central Africa, FRANCE 24 travelled to Dakar, Senegal, to investigate this secret operation. Nathan Gallo and Derek Thomson report, with footage by Aminatou Diallo.  “When you read articles like this, you definitely get the impression they are intended to manipulate opinion,” says Ibrahima Lissa Faye, the Head of Publication at the Senegalese media outlet PressAfrik. He learned from our team last March that his news site had published 13 articles featuring Russian propaganda.  These 13 articles are part of a vast Russian influence campaign on the African continent. A leak of confidential documents revealed the existence of Project Afrika, a Russian operation aimed at using African online media outlets to spread Moscow’s strategic agenda – from anti-France and anti-Ukraine positions to blatant disinformation.  644 articles published and $300,000 spent in just a few months  Pan-African media outlet The Continent received …

Photos: Russia’s Constant Bombardment of Kyiv

Photos: Russia’s Constant Bombardment of Kyiv

Published by Sam Flores

Libkos / Getty An aerial view shows the scale of destruction, including burned-down houses and damaged streets, in Vyshneve, on the outskirts of Kyiv, following a Russian night attack on July 6, 2026. The attack caused secondary detonations for more than three hours, destroying or heavily damaging hundreds of homes and forcing hundreds of residents to evacuate. Source link

Ukrainian drones hit Russia’s largest oil refinery in Omsk, Siberia

Ukrainian drones hit Russia’s largest oil refinery in Omsk, Siberia

Published by Sam Flores

Fire at Omsk oil refinery as the region’s governor says the province came under attack from Ukrainian drones, in Omsk, Russia July 6, 2026, in this picture obtained from a social media video. Reuters Ukrainian drones struck a major oil refinery in the city of Omsk in western Siberia, in what appears to be one of Kyiv’s deepest attacks on Russian territory since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Ukraine’s military general staff said Monday that the strike caused a fire at the facility, which is situated nearly 2,500 kilometers (1,553 miles) from Ukrainian territory and close to Russia’s border with Kazakhstan. The attack, which was confirmed by local Russian officials, provides further evidence of Kyiv’s enhanced long-range drone capabilities and comes on the eve of a crunch NATO summit. Heads of state from 32 countries are expected in Turkey’s capital from Tuesday for the two-day conference. “Today, our long-range sanctions reached the oil refinery in Omsk – nearly 2,500 kilometres from Ukraine,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his daily evening address, according to a …