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[DaffyVina]

10:29
Tens of thousands likely killed in Mariupol - Zelensky
Destroyed buildings and a vehicle in the city of Mariupol on 9 April
Copyright: Getty Images

Tens of thousands of people have likely been killed in the southern city of Mariupol since Russia invaded, according to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky.

In a video meeting with South Korean lawmakers, he said: "Mariupol has been destroyed, there are tens of thousands of dead, but even despite this, the Russians are not stopping their offensive".

The BBC cannot verify Zelensky's claim, but what we do know is that refugees who have fled the besieged city have described the situation there as desperate; with bodies buried in shallow graves, looting by Chechen fighters, and starving residents being killed when they venture out of shelters to find water.


10:51
'Massive indications of war crimes' in Ukraine, says German FM

"We have massive indications of war crimes," Germany's foreign minister Annalena Baerbock has told reporters before a meeting of European ministers in Luxembourg.

"In the end, the courts will have to decide, but for us, it is central to secure all evidence," she says.

Germany has been heavily reliant on imports of Russian energy but has drawn up plans to find alternative energy supplies.

"As the German federal government, we have already made it clear that there will be a complete phase-out of fossil fuels, starting with coal, then oil and gas."

"So that this can be implemented jointly in the European Union, we need a joint, coordinated plan to completely phase out fossil fuels to be able to withdraw as a European Union," Baerbock has said.

A map showing the Nord Stream pipeline from Russia to Germany


11:05
Dnipro targeted by Russian attacks - reports

Smoke rises from the airport of Dnipro, on 10 April
Copyright: AFP/Getty Images
Image caption: Photos showed plumes of thick black smoke rising from the direction of the airport in Dnipro on Sunday

An airport in the city of Dnipro, in central Ukraine, was destroyed on Sunday, according to the regional governor.

Writing on Telegram, Valentyn Reznichenko said missiles had hit the airport and surrounding infrastructure.

In a separate incident, the Russian defence ministry said it had destroyed four S-300 anti-aircraft missile systems yesterday which were reportedly concealed in a hangar on the outskirts of the city.

25 troops were caught up in the attack, Russia said.

The BBC can't verify these claims, but if true, it would be a significant blow to Ukraine, which would have hoped to use such a system to bolster its air defences.

Dnipro has become a logistics hub for supplies and medical care. It bridges eastern and western Ukraine, with multiple links over the Dnieper River, meaning that it could be a potential target for Russian forces as they turn their attention on the east.


11:17
Heavy Russian weapons seen moving across Belarus

A pro-Ukrainian Belarusian online intelligence Telegram channel, Belaruski Hayun, says it has spotted substantial movement of Russian armed forces equipment by train across Belarus on Sunday.

It says trains loaded with military equipment have been seen at railway stations in the capital Minsk and also south-eastern Belarus, including Kalinkavichy, Khoyniki and Homel North stations.

Trucks and tanks were also seen on a train at Rechytsa railway station in the south east. Anti-aircraft missile systems and amphibious armoured vehicles were spotted waiting to be loaded nearby.

Six fighter jets and transport aircraft took off from Baranavichy airfield in the west of Belarus and several Russian helicopters took off from Machulishchy near Minsk.

The Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has been an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin throughout the Ukraine war.

Russia has pulled troops away from Kyiv and is shifting most of the focus of its war to eastern Ukraine.


12:36
French team arrives to probe claims of war crimes

A French team has arrived in Ukraine to help local investigators look into allegations of war crimes around the capital Kyiv.

The news was announced on Twitter by French ambassador Etienne de Poncins, who said this was the first foreign unit to offer such support.

Claims of civilian killings in Bucha caused global outrage last week. Ukraine claims some 1,222 bodies were found in areas near Kyiv recently left by Russian soldiers.

Russia denies its soldiers were to blame.


12:48
Russian protest journalist hired by German newspaper
Video content
Video caption: Marina Ovsyannikova disrupted Russia's flagship evening news broadcast

A journalist who staged an anti-war protest during Russia's most-watched news programme has been hired by German newspaper Die Welt.

Marina Ovsyannikova hit the headlines after she ran on to the set of Channel One's Vremya holding a sign reading: "No war, stop the war, don't believe the propaganda, they are lying to you here."

She was detained for 14 hours and eventually fined 30,000 rouble (£214; $280).

But despite the potential risk of further prosecution, the 43-year-old editor decided to stay in Russia, where she will now be a freelance correspondent for Die Welt "reporting from Ukraine and Russia, among other places".

In a statement, Ovsyannikova said she had taken the new role because the newspaper "stands for what is being defended so vehemently by the courageous people on the ground in Ukraine right now: for freedom".

[DaffyVina]

23:56 11 Apr
Zelensky: Russians 'left mines everywhere'
Russia is finding itself increasingly shunned by the international community, Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky says in his nightly Facebook address, adding that the "invasion makes [Russia] more and more toxic every day".

He goes on to warn that "tens if not hundreds of thousands" of dangerous munitions have been left behind by Russia in their withdrawal.

"The occupiers left mines everywhere. In the houses they seized. Just on the streets, in the fields. They mined people's property, mined cars, doors," he says.

He warned of reports that Russia may be planning to deploy chemical weapons in Ukraine, adding that they are taking those concerns "as seriously as possible" and calling on Ukrainians to fortify their resolve.

"The key task both today and every day at this time is concrete defensive measures," he tells Ukrainian citizens.

"A concrete increase in our ability to repel any attacks by Russian troops. I am dealing with this issue almost around the clock."

He says that Ukraine's troops are "braver" than Russia's forces, and "are beating the occupiers with wisdom and well-thought-out tactics".

But he says Ukraine is still reliant on its international partners for weapons, and does not have the equipment it needs "in particular, to unblock Mariupol".


0:27
Kharkiv residents warned not to approach scattered mines

Officials in the north-eastern city of Kharkiv have warned residents to stay away from mines that they say are being dropped from the air on to the city.

Lieutenant Colonel Nikolay Ovcharuk, who leads the country's demining initiative, said the devices have "self-destructing timers" that allow them to go off hours after making impact on the ground.

Loudspeakers in the area are being used to warn people against entering cordoned-off areas where Ovcharuk's teams are working.

The scatterable explosives are considered anti-personnel mines that are likely to cause civilian injuries, and are therefore banned under some interpretations of the laws of war.

Kharkiv residents told Reuters that some of the mines had been dropped early on Monday morning.

"Tonight at 01:00 we heard some strange sounds, something whistled and then it all dropped," a local man named Sergey told Reuters.


0:35
Russians seize cargo ship and crew in Mariupol port
Russian forces have seized a cargo ship docked in the port of Mariupol along with those on board, Ukraine's human rights ombudswoman says.

Lyudmyla Denisova posted in her Telegram channel that 18 Ukrainians and one Egyptian were taken off the ship, named the Smarta, and all contact with them had been lost.

The captured individuals include the captain's wife who happened to be on board at the time.

The Liberian-flagged ship docked in Mariupol on 21 February, days before the Russian invasion, on its way to Turkey and had been unable to put to sea again, Denisova said.


1:06
Child, 7, among 11 killed by shelling in Kharkiv - officials
Eleven civilians were killed by Russian shelling in the Kharkiv region of eastern Ukraine overnight, said the governor of the Kharkiv region, Oleh Synyehubov.

One of the victims was a seven-year-old child, he said. More than 14 other people were hospitalised.

Writing on Telegram, Synyehubov also warned residents not to approach or touch any ammunition, but to alert rescuers if they see any.

He said the Kharkiv region was shelled 66 times with rocket launchers, artillery and tanks.


1:07
UK checking Russia chemical weapons claim

There have been "reports that Russian forces may have used chemical agents in an attack on the people of Mariupol", UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has tweeted.

"We are working urgently with partners to verify details. Any use of such weapons would be a callous escalation in this conflict and we will hold [Russian President Vladimir] Putin and his regime to account," Truss said.

This comes shortly after fighters from Ukraine's Azov regiment defending Mariupol said on Monday that Russian troops "used a poisonous substance of unknown origin against Ukrainian forces and civilians" in the besieged southern port city.

It provided no evidence to back up its claim.

Petro Andryushchenko, an aide to the mayor of Mariupol, wrote on his Telegram channel that reports about a chemical attack had not been confirmed and that he expected to provide clarifications later.

The Pentagon said the US was aware of "social media reports" about the claim of Russian forces using a potential chemical munition in Mariupol, but also made clear it was unconfirmed.

US defence department spokesman John Kirby said: "We cannot confirm at this time and will continue to monitor the situation closely."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky touched on this issue in his video address late on Monday.

"One of the mouthpieces of the [Russian] occupiers stated that they could use chemical weapons against the defenders of Mariupol. We treat this with the utmost seriousness." Zelensky gave no further details.

Russia has not publicly commented on the issue.

Western and Ukrainian officials have been accusing Moscow of planning to use chemical weapons in Ukraine going back to early in the conflict, yet no such attack has been substantiated.

[DaffyVina]

2:48
More than 10,000 civilians died in Mariupol - mayor

The mayor of the besieged city of Mariupol has told the Associated Press news agency that at least 10,000 civilians have died in the southern port since the war began.

Mayor Vadym Boychenko said on Monday that the corpses were “carpeted through the streets”. He was speaking from an undisclosed location in Ukraine, but outside the city.

He added that there were still 120,000 civilians in Mariupol. They urgently need of food, water and medicine, he added.

Boychenko also said he had received reports of Russians collecting bodies and storing them in fridges at a huge shopping centre.

“Mobile crematoriums have arrived in the form of trucks: you open it, and there is a pipe inside and these bodies are burned,” he said.

The BBC has not been able to verify the mayor's claims, which he told the Associated Press were based on multiple sources.


4:28
Almost two-thirds of Ukrainian children have fled their homes: UN

Nearly two-thirds of all Ukrainian children have fled their homes in the six weeks since Russia’s invasion, the UN's children's agency UNICEF said on Monday.

The UN has also verified the deaths of 142 youngsters, although they have warned the actual number is almost certainly much higher.

Manuel Fontaine, UNICEF’s emergency programs director who just returned from Ukraine, said having 4.8 million of Ukraine’s 7.5 million children displaced in such a short time is something he had not seen happen so quickly in 31 years of humanitarian work.

"Of the 3.2 million children estimated to have remained in their homes, nearly half may be at risk of not having enough food," Fontaine told the UN security council.

He warned the situation was probably worse in cities like Mariupol and Kherson, where there was no water and sanitation services and the supply of food and medicine had been disrupted.

Meanwhile Ukraine’s UN ambassador, Sergiy Kyslytsya, claimed Russia has taken more than 121,000 children out of Ukraine and reportedly drafted a bill to simplify and accelerate adoption procedures.

Fontaine said there was so far "no evidence" of such accusations, but that UNICEF would investigate the matter.


5:20
Religious leaders to visit Ukraine in show of solidarity

An international delegation of faith leaders is visiting Ukraine on Tuesday to show solidarity with those affected by the invasion.

The group is expected to meet those who have fled eastern Ukraine for the western city of Chernivtsi.

The delegation will include monks, rabbis, Muslim clerics, Buddhist and Hindu religious leaders and the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams.

Williams told BBC Radio Four in an interview last week that there was a "strong case" to expel the Russian Orthodox Church from the World Council of Churches, for its failure to condemn the killing of innocent people.

Pope Francis has given the visit his blessing, saying this was not the time to keep silent, but to forcefully demand an end to what he called "these abominable actions".


7:56
UK investigating claim Russia used chemical weapons in Ukraine

The UK's armed forces minister says London is working to confirm whether Russian forces have used chemical weapons in Ukraine.

James Heappey tells BBC Breakfast that reports such munitions were used against the besieged southern city of Mariupol have been circulating on Ukrainian social media, but neither British defence intelligence nor their counterparts in Kyiv have been able to verify those claims.

Heappey adds that the UK is "working urgently" to find out if chemical weapons were used. He repeats the UK foreign secretary's comments on Monday night that Russia will be "held to account" and that any use of chemical weapons is "abhorrent" and "crosses a line".

If there is proof such weapons have been used then "all options are on the table" in terms of the international response, Heappey says.

"Verifying it is clearly very important," Heappey adds. "If chemical weapons were used it is a very important moment for our PM [Boris Johnson] and other heads of government around the world.

"President Putin must be aware the use of chemical weapons is unacceptable," he tells Breakfast.


***TRIGGER WARNING***

Civilians describe Russian atrocities

Yogita Limaye
BBC News, Kyiv

Photo: A grave created in a garden
Copyright: BBC
Image caption: Anna has buried her husband in the garden

The Russians have withdrawn from areas around Kyiv, but they've left deeply wounded lives. The BBC has heard first-hand testimony and found evidence of Ukrainian women being raped by invading soldiers.

In a quiet, rural neighbourhood 70km (45 miles) west of Kyiv, we spoke to Anna, who is 50. We have changed her name to protect her identity.
Anna told us that on 7 March she had been at home with her husband when a foreign soldier barged in.
"At gunpoint, he took me to a house nearby. He ordered me: 'Take your clothes off or I'll shoot you.' He kept threatening to kill me if I didn't do as he said.

Read more (warning: contains graphic descriptions of sexual violence): 'Russian soldiers raped me and killed my husband'
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-61071243
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Video content
Video caption: Women share evidence of Russian soldiers raping and killing civiliansWomen share evidence of Russian soldiers raping and killing civilians

[DaffyVina]

9:17
Claims of chemical attack in Mariupol
Josh Cheetham
Open Source Analyst, BBC News

As we've reported, rumours have been circulating on social media of a chemical weapons attack by Russian forces in the besieged city of Mariupol.

The claims were first made yesterday by the Azov Battalion, a far-right Ukrainian militia fighting in the city.

In a video shared on Telegram, the group's founder and former commander Andriy Biletskyy said chemicals had been dropped over the city's Azovstal steelworks, which was being guarded by the Azov Battalion.

He said three people were injured, but no further evidence has been provided as yet.

Ukraine's Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Malya has said that, based on preliminary information, phosphorus munitions may have been used, but investigations are ongoing.

Just yesterday, the spokesperson for Russia-backed Donetsk separatists, Eduard Basurin, publicly called for Russia to use its chemical, biological and radiological defence unit to "smoke out" Ukrainian troops from Azovstal.

In an interview with Interfax news agency, he's since denied that separatist forces have used chemical weapons in their attempts to take Mariupol.

The US has said that it was aware of the reports and could not confirm them. If true, they were deeply concerning, a Pentagon spokesman said.


9:54
Alleged chemical weapons use fits 'Syrian playbook' - analyst

Emergency workers remove debris of a building destroyed in Mariupol
Copyright: Reuters
Image caption: Mariupol, pictured earlier this month, has seen intense bombardment

More now on those unconfirmed reports of a chemical weapons attack in Mariupol.

Intelligence consultant Justin Crump has told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that the attack, if verified, could fit a wider pattern of Russian behaviour on the battlefield.

It follows the “Syrian playbook”, he observes. Russian troops may begin with “small, deniable operations,” which the West may turn a blind eye to. But later, they “increase the scale”, he explains.

But Crump acknowledges that the situation is “very uncertain” in Mariupol. Ukrainian authorities say they are investigating the alleged use of chemical weapons there.

Russia itself has not yet commented on the allegations. It’s previously claimed that alleged chemical weapons attacks in Syria – where its troops have been supporting the government – were staged.



10:51
Ukraine says 186 children killed by war

A child crouches next to candles during a vigil for Ukrainians in Malta
Copyright: Reuters/Darrin Zammit Lupi
Image caption: A vigil in Malta for victims of Russia's invasion of Ukraine

At least 186 children in Ukraine have been killed and 344 wounded by the Russian invasion, the Ukrainian prosecutor-general's office has said on Telegram.

The highest number of casualties were in the eastern region of Donetsk, where 113 deaths have been recorded, Ukraine says.

Ukraine also says 938 educational institutions have been damaged by shelling - 87 completely destroyed.

UN children's agency UNICEF has said nearly two-thirds of all Ukrainian children - some 4.8 million - have fled their homes since Russia's invasion started.



11:05
Official claims 'chemical poisoning' in Mariupol
Toby Luckhurst and Mariana Maglych
Reporting from Lviv

We’ve been hearing reports of a potential chemical attack in Mariupol, the Ukrainian city besieged by Russian forces.

Serhiy Orlov, the city’s deputy mayor, told us on the phone that the city council has confirmed a “chemical poisoning” delivered by a Russian drone.

“We cannot provide more detailed information," he said. “But we have confirmation from the military that this has happened.”

The allegation that chemical munitions had been used against Mariupol originally came from the Azov battalion - a Ukrainian military unit with links to the far right.

It is not clear how many soldiers were affected, but the battalion said its fighters had suffered minor injuries, including shortness of breath, with one man reportedly collapsing with "cotton legs".

The BBC cannot verify this allegation independently. Confirming anything in the area is extremely difficult, and the full picture of what is going on in the besieged port city is still unclear.

What we do know though is Russian forces continue to hammer Mariupol, which sits just a short distance along the coast from the Russian border. Capturing the city is one of Moscow's core aims in the war.



11:55
Can industrial toxins explain alleged 'chemical attack' in Mariupol?
A chemical weapons expert from the Royal United Services Institute (Rusi) is urging caution about a claimed chemical attack in Mariupol, noting that illness among Ukrainian soldiers may be the result of contamination encountered during fighting in industrial areas.

In a string of posts on Twitter, Dan Kaszeta - an author and former soldier in the US Army's Chemical Corps - says there remains "a paucity of information" about what took place in Mariupol.

The city's deputy mayor has claimed that the chemical attack was carried out by a Russian drone.

Kaszeta added that the symptoms that the Ukrainian soldiers are reportedly showing - such as shortness of breath - might be explained by the inhalation of fumes caused by fighting in a heavily industrial area.

"Mariupol is one big toxic burn pit at the moment," he said. "Somehow we're supposed to assume that one small drone payload of something is tragically unhealthier than the rest of this mess of an environment."

"It is, in fact, plausible," Kaszeta added. "But it's also plausible that we have a classic problem of smoke and flame and modern industrial materials."



12:57
Ukraine says Kremlin plotting acts of terror in Russia
Russian security services are planning "acts of terror" on Russia's own territory to turn public opinion against Ukraine, Ukrainian Defence Ministry chief Kyrylo Budanov has claimed.

"Mining and blowing up residential buildings, hospitals and schools in Russian population centres," are parts of their plans, Budanov said, according to Interfax-Ukraine news agency.

He also says they are planning "missile strikes on, and bombings of, Belgorod [near Ukraine's eastern border with Russia] or a Crimean city [in the south of Ukraine]".

Budanov went on to say it's possible Russia will portray these acts as "justification for brutality against Ukrainian civilians" in Bucha, near the capital Kyiv, and the eastern city Kramatorsk




14:57
How can evidence of a chemical attack be gathered?
Paul Myers and Josh Cheetham
Open Source Analysts, BBC News

Earlier we reported on claims by the Azov Battalion - a Ukrainian military unit with links to the far right - that Russia has used chemical weapons in the besieged city of Mariupol. (Read more here).

The group has since put out a video with three people allegedly affected by the attack.

One man, identified by Azov as a soldier, is pictured lying down with his eyes closed, recalling a “fog” that emerged after an explosion which made him dizzy, out of breath and unable to stand.

Another man, said to be a resident in the city, said he remembered seeing white smoke and felt suddenly very tired, with ringing in his ears.

The BBC has not been able to independently verify these accounts.

A former commander of chemical and biological defence forces for Nato and the UK, Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, has been explaining how the facts can be established.

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons would usually be called in to assess any evidence, he said, but that will be challenging in Mariupol, for obvious reasons.

Investigators would also need to analyse soil samples from the site - again, challenging in the circumstances.

Western governments are able to examine satellite imagery and other intelligence for any signs that chemical weapons units or vehicles were nearby, he said.

But that won't give any hard and fast answers any time soon, Mr de Bretton-Gordon said.



15:04
15:04
Satellite images show Russian troop build-up
David Brown

BBC News

Reports and satellite images suggest Russia is building up troops and equipment in at least three places on Ukraine’s border: Belgorod and Voronezh regions, and around the town of Matveev Kurgan to the south.

Inside Ukraine, Russia is reinforcing its operations around Izyum and preparing to thrust south to take Slovyansk, according to the Institute for the Study of War.

From there, Russian troops may be able to advance east or south east to encircle a contingent of Ukrainian ground forces.

Should Mariupol fall, Russian forces may start to push north to complete the encirclement of a larger group of Ukrainian troops.

Some of Ukraine’s most experienced and best-equipped units are thought to be in the east.

They are heavily dug in to key positions, and analysts say Russian troops may struggle to force them out.
David Brown
BBC News

Reports and satellite images suggest Russia is building up troops and equipment in at least three places on Ukraine’s border: Belgorod and Voronezh regions, and around the town of Matveev Kurgan to the south.

Inside Ukraine, Russia is reinforcing its operations around Izyum and preparing to thrust south to take Slovyansk, according to the Institute for the Study of War.

From there, Russian troops may be able to advance east or south east to encircle a contingent of Ukrainian ground forces.

Should Mariupol fall, Russian forces may start to push north to complete the encirclement of a larger group of Ukrainian troops.

Some of Ukraine’s most experienced and best-equipped units are thought to be in the east.

They are heavily dug in to key positions, and analysts say Russian troops may struggle to force them out.



15:18
Five shot dead in car by Russians near Bucha - prosecutor
Russian troops shot dead five civilians, including two children, in a car in Bucha district during their occupation of the area, the Kyiv regional prosecutor's office has said.

The children were aged one and 14.

In a statement on its telegram channel, the office said local people buried the dead at the scene beside their car near the village of Havronshchyna.

The report came as the mayor of Bucha said 403 bodies of people killed by Russian troops in the town had been found so far.

Russia has denied committing atrocities against civilians in Bucha and other areas north of Kyiv but satellite images show that killings did take place during their occupation.

People search for missing relatives at mass grave in Bucha
EPACopyright: EPA
People are still trying to trace missing loved ones after the Russian occupation of Bucha


15:46
How the Ukraine war is starving the world's neediest

Imogen Foulkes
BBC News, Geneva

"Don't make us take food from children that are hungry to give to children that are starving," pleads the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP).

Soaring food and fuel costs, together with budget cuts in some traditional donor countries, have forced the WFP to halve the amount of food it is giving to millions of people in Yemen, Chad and Niger.

In December 2021, the UN made a record appeal for $41bn (£31bn) to help 273 million people this year. They say those people, who are mostly children, will likely die without the aid.

Many African countries, while not dependent on UN aid, import grain from Ukraine.

Somalia gets more than 60% of its grain from Ukraine and Russia, while Eritrea gets nearly 97% of its wheat from Ukraine.

They now have to bid against Europeans and North Americans on the international market in search of food.

[DaffyVina]

18:02 12 Apr
What's the latest on the peace talks?
As we've been reporting, Vladimir Putin has said peace talks between Ukraine and Russia have stalled.

Here's the latest from the Russian president - and the view from the Ukrainian side:

Putin says talks with Ukraine "have again returned to a dead-end situation for us" while meeting his Belarusian ally Alexander Lukashenko
He also says Russia's "military operation" will continue, blaming Ukraine for "inconsistency in key issues" from talks and "fake claims" about war crimes

However, Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak has today told Reuters that although negotiations are "extremely difficult", they will continue
Podolyak said he believes Russia is trying to put pressure on future peace talks by making public statements beforehand



18:39 12 Apr
Ukraine 'foils' cyber attack on power systems
Gordon Corera
Security correspondent, BBC News

Ukrainian authorities say they foiled an attempt to disrupt their energy infrastructure through a cyber-attack.

They say the hackers first got inside systems by February. They then tried to activate the malicious software they had implanted on 8 April. This could have switched off power supplies.

This type of attack has been carried out in Ukraine before as far back as 2015. However, authorities say this time the attack was foiled.

Those responsible are said to be a hacking group known as Sandworm, linked to Russian military intelligence and a series of previous operations (always denied by Moscow).

“Sandworm is an apex predator, capable of serious operations, but they aren’t infallible,” says John Hultquist from the cyber-security company Mandiant.

They may have been seeking to carry out the attack in support of military operations in the region that was targeted.

Ukraine has been subject to a series of cyber-attacks in the run up to and since the invasion began but has surprised many observers by defending itself against them better than expected.



18:55 12 Apr
How will we know if Russia used chemical weapons?

More now on claims that Russian forces used chemical weapons in the besieged port city of Mariupol.

There has so far been no evidence proving that such weapons have been used. But how would we know if they had been?

The global watchdog for chemical weapons - the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons - would usually be called in to assess any evidence. But that will be challenging in Mariupol, which is surrounded and struggling to get even basic supplies.

The former British Army officer Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, a chemical weapons expert, cautioned that even if uncontaminated samples could be collected from the scene they would need to be taken to another country for analysis.

This, he said, would take some time.



19:27 12 Apr
More than 400 civilian bodies found in Bucha - officials

Officials in Bucha say they've now found 403 bodies of civilians who they believe were killed during an occupation by Russian troops.

The city's mayor Anatoliy Fedoruk says the toll is still growing, as other residents remain missing.

Images of dead bodies in the streets have prompted global outrage, and allegations of war crimes have been levelled at the Kremlin.

Russia has again denied its troops were to blame - with President Putin today claiming images of civilian bodies were faked.



19:48 12 Apr
New mass graves are found almost daily - Zelensky
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking to the Lithuanian parliament earlier today, said there are "thousands and thousands of victims" and "hundreds of cases of brutal torture" being discovered in areas reclaimed from Russian forces by Ukraine.

"New mass graves are found almost daily. Bodies continue to be found in drains and cellars," he said.

Officials in Ukraine's capital Kyiv will continue to "investigate war crimes" carried out by the Russian military, Zelensky told Lithuanian MPs.

He's sure Russia will deny the allegations but the crimes will be "on the conscience of the Russian propagandists".

Ukrainian prosecutors have said today that six people have been found shot dead in a Kyiv building basement.

Russia has repeatedly denied accusations of war crime and has blamed Ukraine.



20:05 12 Apr
Grieving Russians can't believe talk of war crimes
Steve Rosenberg
BBC Russia editor

Photo: Line of graves for Russian soldiers

In Stavropol cemetery, there is a new line of graves.

The fresh mounds of earth are covered in a sea of flowers. Decorating the graves, fluttering in the breeze, are military banners with emblems of elite Russian units.

Fixed to wooden crosses are the portraits of soldiers, their names and the dates they died.

The servicemen buried here lost their lives after 24 February: the start of President Putin's "special military operation" in Ukraine.

At the cemetery I meet Dmitry. He lays red carnations at the grave of his former paratrooper comrade, an officer called Sergei Tysyachny.

"I don't believe these fakes," Dmitry says about war crime allegations levelled against some Russian soldiers. "I will never believe them.

"I know how my commander, Sergei, taught us to act. I trust my comrades and my army. They would never do things like this."

[DaffyVina]

20:45 12 Apr
Leaders from multiple religions visit Ukraine together

Aleem Maqbool
Religion editor, BBC News

Religious leaders at a converted health centre in Chernivtsi
Copyright: BBC News

"I'm Archbishop Rowan Williams from England, I come with greetings and love and prayers from my brothers and sisters in England for all of you brothers and sisters here."

The displaced families that Dr Williams is addressing in a large room in a converted health centre in Chernivtsi in western Ukraine, break into applause.

To the side of the former Archbishop of Canterbury stands a rabbi, a Hindu spiritual leader and a Buddhist nun.

Together with monks, a Bosnian Mufti, a Greek Orthodox Archbishop and other Jewish faith leaders they made for a remarkable delegation, brought together in a country under siege by a mission to try to provide some degree of comfort.

But all of them acknowledged their words were unlikely to have any real bearing on the horrors still unfolding to the east. There are questions as to whether something more tangible can be done, for example, to put pressure on a Russian Orthodox Church leadership that has given its blessing to the war.


21:06 12 Apr
We've stopped counting the dead, says Mariupol's mayor

The mayor of the besieged port city of Mariupol says an estimated 21,000 people have died there but that officials have had to stop counting bodies due to street fighting, Reuters reports.

Mayor Vadym Boychenko also said that bodies were disappearing from the streets and that he suspected Russian forces were responsible.

The BBC has been unable to independently verify this claim.


21:37 12 Apr
Zelensky and wife 'apart for more than a month'
Olena Zelenska
Copyright: Getty Images
Image caption: Olena married Volodymyr Zelensky in 2003 after the pair met at university

Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska says that she and President Volodymyr Zelensky have been living separately for more than a month to protect her and her children.

She told CNN via email: "Volodymyr and his team actually live in the president's office. Due to the danger, my children and I were forbidden to stay there. So, for more than a month we communicate only by phone."

Zelenska said her husband has "shown the same traits" that he exhibits as a "wonderful father" in his wartime leadership.

"He has not changed. It's just that more people saw it through my eyes," she said.

Zelensky's wife said she feels like she is "walking a tightrope" and will "lose time and balance" if she thinks about how she is doing it.

The first lady said that the war must not become "habitual" and Ukraine's dead must not become statistics.

"Don't get used to our grief!" she said.



22:10 12 Apr
'I'll quit my job, I want to do something to help'
Toby Luckhurst
Reporting from Lviv

Simon's car, with Peace for Ukraine written on it
Copyright: BBC
Image caption: Simon, a former British soldier, is now driving cars in Ukraine

As night falls in western Ukraine a convoy of British vehicles pulls into a car park in the suburbs of Lviv.

Simon Waller, a former soldier in the Royal Corps of Signals, has driven one of 16 cars from Birmingham across the continent to Ukraine.

The 55-year-old says he was inspired to help because of friends he has in Kharkiv, who he met seven years ago on a scuba diving trip in the Maldives. After the invasion he was "in shock" for weeks, until they told him the country needed drivers.

"I said, I'm in, I'll quit my job, I want to do something to help you, help your friends, help your family, help Ukraine," he says.

Simon put the word out online among former army friends, and soon he was part of a convoy of vehicles heading to the war.

"The last trip out here, the vehicle I drove out… the next morning we had a photo of it on the frontline in Kyiv," he said. "That was just the best feeling. It was being used literally within 12 hours."

Asked how best people in the UK can help, he says there's "an awful lot people can do" – but to be mindful of how best to do it.

"Don't just donate clothes. Some people do need the clothes but it's better [Ukrainians] can buy clothes for themselves, in one way or the other," he says.

"Everybody wants to help but they don't often think about how they’re helping."



23:00 12 Apr
Russian opposition figure jailed

Vladimir Kara-Murza
Copyright: Getty Images
Image caption: Kara-Murza says he has been poisoned by the Russian authorities twice

Prominent Putin opponent Vladimir Kara-Murza has been jailed for 15 days in Russia for "disobeying police orders".

His lawyer, Vadim Prokhorov, published a police report on his client's arrest, which said he had behaved strangely and resisted arrest.

It was not explained in court why police were waiting for Kara-Murza, the lawyer said.

A former associate of murdered opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, Kara-Murza is a vocal critic of the war, and co-founder of a group that has called for Russia's political and military leaders to be declared war criminals.

He claims he has twice been poisoned by the authorities, in 2015 and 2017.

[DaffyVina]

2:52
'At least 20 journalists killed in war so far'

BBC Monitoring

At least 20 journalists have been killed in Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion on 24 February, the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine has reported on its Telegram channel.

It published a list of their names and said that these were only deaths confirmed by the prosecutor-general's office.

Some of them were foreigners, the union added.

[DaffyVina]

3:51
Was a cluster bomb used in Ukraine station attack?
Manisha Ganguly and Joe Inwood
BBC News

Munitions experts believe a missile that fell near Kramatorsk station was a cluster bomb
Copyright: Reuters

The BBC has found evidence that a cluster bomb, banned by many countries under international law, was used in an attack on the Kramatorsk railway station in Ukraine.

Cluster bombs deliver a payload of bomblets that spread out and explode over a wide area.

More than 50 people died in the attack on the station, which was crowded with people.

What is the evidence?

BBC journalists who visited the station after the attack found patterns consistent with the use of a cluster-munitions warhead.

The resulting multiple explosions typically scatter fragments around the site of the main impact of the missile, leaving tell-tale pockmark indentations.

Remains of a Soviet-era Tochka-U missile were found in the aftermath of the attack. It is a short-range single warhead ballistic missile that can be fitted with a cluster warhead that carries 50 bomblets.

Experts say impact marks are consistent with cluster munitions.

"The impact mark is pretty consistent with a sub-munition like the 9N24, a Soviet-era cluster munition that can be carried by the Tochka missile," Sidharth Kaushal, a missile expert at the Royal United Services Institute (Rusi), said.

Read more on evidence of cluster munitions used in Ukraine, and why these weapons are banned.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/61079356
USE A VPN TO READ THIS

[DaffyVina]

6:33
BREAKING
Polish and Baltic leaders to meet Zelensky in Kyiv
The Polish, Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian presidents have been travelling to the Ukrainian capital Kyiv to meet Ukraine's President Zelensky, an adviser to the Polish leader has said.

Our countries are "showing support to Ukraine and President Zelensky", Polish President Andrzej Duda's adviser Jakub Kumoch has said on Twitter.

Their visit comes days after UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited the city on Saturday.


6:59
The latest updates from Ukraine
If you're just joining us or need a quick catch up, here's the latest developments:

Diplomacy:

• The Polish, Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian presidents are travelling to the Ukrainian capital Kyiv to meet President Zelensky, an adviser to the Polish leader has said.

• US President Joe Biden has said, for the first time, that "dictator" Vladimir Putin is carrying out genocide in Ukraine.

• "Yes, I called it genocide. It has become clearer and clearer that Putin is just trying to wipe out the idea of even being — being able to be Ukrainian," Biden said at an event in Iowa.

• The White House is preparing to send Ukraine another $750m (£575m) in weapons, according to US media.

• US President Joe Biden and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson have spoken by phone, discussing how to increase economic pressure on Russia and end Western reliance on its oil and gas.

• In a speech to the Lithuanian parliament, Ukrainian President Zelensky said the European Union was still too hesitant in imposing sanctions on Moscow.

In Ukraine:

• Ukraine and Russia are building up their military forces in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas as Moscow switches the focus of its offensive

• Reports and satellite images suggest that Russia is building up troops and military equipment in three places along its border with Ukraine - Belgorod and Voronezh regions, and around the town of Matveev Kurgan to the south

• Ukraine says it has arrested the country's most senior pro-Russian politician, Viktor Medvedchuk. The opposition party leader had been under house arrest suspected of treason but fled shortly after the Russian invasion

• President Zelensky offered Russia to trade him for captured Ukrainians.

• The US says it is "deeply concerned" by reports that chemical weapons have been used by Russian forces attacking the southern port city of Mariupol

• Ukrainian forces have said that Russia plans to launch an attack on the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, which has become the focal point of Russia's efforts to capture the key port city of Mariupol
  The plant is one of the key operating bases left for the several thousand Ukrainian fighters remaining in the besieged city

In Russia:

• In a rare public appearance, Russian President Vladimir Putin has vowed to continue the invasion of Ukraine until Russia's "noble" aims are fulfilled.

• He said that peace talks had reached a dead end and said that Russia would "rhythmically and calmly" continue the invasion.

• Appearing alongside Belarusian leader Aleksandr Lukashenko, Putin said Russia would continue its "special operation" to defend Russian speakers in eastern Ukraine.

This is Ayeshea Perera in Singapore and Andrew Clarance in Delhi signing off and handing over to our colleagues, Flora Drury, Jack Burgess and Alexandra Fouché in London.

[DaffyVina]

7:45
Humanitarian corridors not possible today - Vereshchuk
Ukraine's Deputy PM Vereshchuk
Copyright: REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
Image caption: Ukraine's Deputy PM Iryna Vereshchuk says Russian occupiers "disregard the norms of international humanitarian law"

Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk says it will not be possible to open humanitarian corridors to allow civilians to escape today as the situation remains too dangerous.

On her Telegram channel, she accuses Russia's occupying forces of violating the ceasefire, saying Moscow cannot control its soldiers on the ground.

Vereshchuk says work will continue to get the humanitarian corridors open again as soon as possible.


8:31
Finland kicks off Nato membership debate

Finland is kickstarting a debate today which could result in the country applying for Nato membership within a matter of weeks, news agency AFP reports.

A government-commissioned report released on Wednesday will examine the "fundamentally changed" security environment, according to Finland's foreign ministry, and will make its way through parliament.

An opening debate is planned for a week later.

Until recently, most Finns had not wanted to join Nato, but Russia's invasion of Ukraine has prompted some re-thinking, and latest polls suggest there's now a majority in favour of joining.

Russia has warned both Finland and Sweden against joining Nato, arguing the move would not bring stability to Europe.


8:45
Why is the German president 'not wanted' in Kyiv?

The presidents of Poland and the Baltic states are visiting Kyiv for talks with their Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky.
But as we reported earlier, they will not be joined by their German counterpart.

Frank-Walter Steinmeier cancelled his plans to join the group after Ukraine made clear that he was not welcome, with Chancellor Olaf Scholz now invited instead.

The plan, Steinmeier said during a trip to Warsaw, had been to “undertake a trip to Kyiv to send a strong signal of common European solidarity with Ukraine".
"I was ready to do this, but apparently - and I have to take note of this - this was not wanted in Kyiv."

The German newspaper Bild cited Ukrainian sources as saying that Steinmeier was refused admission to Kyiv "due to close ties with Russia in recent years".

Last week, Steinmeier admitted he was wrong about Russia, saying that German policy towards Moscow had failed and that he was mistaken for trying to build bridges with Putin and for supporting Nord Stream 2.


9:18
More than 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers surrender in Mariupol - Russia
Russian troops ride an armoured vehicle through a decimated street in Mariupol
Copyright: Reuters
Image caption: The city has been under intense Russian bombardment for weeks

Russia claims 1,026 Ukrainian soldiers have laid down their arms in the besieged city of Mariupol.

The southern port has been under attack for weeks and is believed to be close to falling into Russian hands.

The group, from 36th Marine Brigade, were said to have surrendered near the Ilyich Iron and Steel works.

Ukrainian defence ministry spokesperson Oleksandr Motuzyanyk has said he has no information as yet on the reports.

Earlier in the week, Mariupol's deputy mayor labelled as "fake" a Facebook post attributed to the same brigade which claimed troops were running out of ammunition and lacking support.