Three killed in Ukrainian strikes, Russia says
A woman has died and a man was injured after missile debris hit an apartment building in Taganrog, a port city on the Sea of Azov in Russia that’s home to various industrial facilities and a grain terminal, according to Rostov governor Yuri Slyusar.
Smoke rises from a warehouse for a Russian e-commerce giant near Saint Petersburg after being hit by Ukrainian drones early on 24 July 2026 (AFP/Getty)
On the Crimean peninsula, illegally annexed by Russia in 2014, Moscow-backed governor Sergei Aksyonov said that two people had been killed and five injured in overnight drone strikes from Ukraine.
Namita Singh29 July 2026 11:10
Wildberries warehouse on fire following Ukrainian strike
A Wildberries warehouse was ablaze on Wednesday in Ryazan, a region south of Moscow and around 500km from Ukrainian-held territory, according to local Russian officials. Ukraine said earlier that it had successfully carried out long-range strikes on the region.
Ryazan governor Pavel Malkov said industrial sites had caught fire and six people were seeking medical help.
Wildberries said its Ryazan site had been evacuated and had stopped accepting deliveries of goods. Video footage on social media, verified by Reuters, showed a large blaze at Wildberries’ Ryazan facility.
Namita Singh29 July 2026 10:57
Ukrainian drones strike targets across Russia, including refineries and a Wildberries warehouse
Ukrainian drones hit oil refineries and logistics facilities in the Russian cities of Perm, Ryazan and Taganrog, as well as the Crimean peninsula overnight, with the country’s top online retailer Wildberries evacuating its Ryazan warehouse.
While Ukraine’s air defences are running low on interceptors like Patriot missiles, leaving it more exposed to Russian strikes, its own deep-strike drone production has outpaced Russia’s, enabling it to hit Russian oil refineries and infrastructure and cause fuel shortages across its 11 time zones.
A man walks past Russian e-commerce giant Wildberries’ logo in downtown Moscow (AFP/Getty)
Drone strikes have damaged at least seven Wildberries warehouses in the past few days, destroying around 10 per cent of the company’s storage capacity and inflicting losses on tens of thousands of small businesses that sell goods and services via the platform, according to the company and local authorities.
In a statement, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said his forces had struck oil refineries in Perm and Ryazan, a logistics centre in Ryazan, an export terminal and military plant in the Rostov region, as well as a naval base in Crimea.
Namita Singh29 July 2026 10:55
Watch: Ukraine gunner shoots down attack drones with rifle from open cockpitUkraine gunner shoots down attack drones with rifle from open cockpit
Daniel Keane29 July 2026 10:50
Russia claims to have taken two more Ukrainian villages
Russia’s defence ministry said on Wednesday that its forces had taken the village of Svitle in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region as well as Nova Sich, a village in the northeastern Sumy region, state news agency RIA reported.
A civilian vessel is on fire, as Ukraine’s navy spokesperson reported a Russian military strike on a civilian vessel (Reuters)
There was no immediate response from Ukraine to the claims.
Namita Singh29 July 2026 10:42
Russian retailer Wildberries evacuates its logistics hub in Ryazan
Russian online retailer Wildberries has evacuated its logistics hub in the central Russian city of Ryazan in accordance with safety requirements, the company said in a Telegram post.
It did not provide other details. A number of industrial facilities in Ryazan caught fire after a drone attack, regional governor Pavel Malkov said on Telegram earlier on Wednesday, without providing details.
Daniel Keane29 July 2026 10:20
Ukraine strikes several Russian facilities, Zelensky says
Ukraine has struck several targets in Russia, president Volodymyr Zelensky said, describing them as “facilities that work to support and prolong the war”.
Zelensky said that a logistics centre in the city of Ryazan, an oil refinery in the Perm region, as well as an export terminal and a military enterprise in the Rostov region had been struck.
He also reported a strike on a site where the Russian Black Sea Fleet’s high-speed boats are based in Russia-occupied Crimea.
A woman looks on as smoke billows from a Wildberries warehouse after a fire broke out at the facility, in Ryazan region, Russia, 29 July 2026 (Reuters)
Earlier, Russian online retailer Wildberries said it had evacuated its logistics hub in the central Russian city of Ryazan in accordance with safety requirements.
It did not provide other details in a Telegram post about the incident. A number of industrial facilities in Ryazan caught fire after a drone attack, regional governor Pavel Malkov said on Telegram earlier on Wednesday.
Namita Singh29 July 2026 10:15
Ukraine strikes Russian oil refinery
Ukraine’s military struck Russia’s Ryazan oil refinery overnight, the General Staff said on Wednesday.
It said on Telegram that a strike on the target was recorded, resulting in a fire.
Daniel Keane29 July 2026 09:50
Zelensky has a ‘good meeting’ with Trump at the White House as he seeks more cooperation with US
US president Donald Trump and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky met on Tuesday ahead of senator Lindsey Graham’s funeral, with the two leaders discussing ways for Ukraine to produce its own powerful weapons and “other ideas that could help” in its ongoing war against Russia.
Taken together, those meetings underscore how much the US president, once a major skeptic of continued assistance to Kyiv, has warmed to Zelensky as Ukraine continues to withstand the Russian barrage more than four years after Moscow’s invasion in 2022.
(Getty)
In a post on social media after the meeting, Zelensky thanked Trump for the “good meeting” and the Republican administration’s efforts to aid Kyiv in the long-running war.
Officials also agreed that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president’s main envoys, would make a trip to Kyiv sometime in the future, according to a person familiar with the talks who was granted anonymity to discuss the closed-door meeting.
Namita Singh29 July 2026 09:20
Pro-Ukraine backers pushing to advance sanctions bill
Volodymyr Zelensky had a busy itinerary during his latest visit to the Washington, DC.
During his meeting at the Capitol, the Ukrainian leader argued that they have a window to bring Russian president Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table, according to one of the people with direct knowledge of the meeting.
The meeting was held just before a key vote on the Russia sanctions bill and after Lindsey Graham’s funeral.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky leaves after a meeting with US senators at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on 28 July 2026 (AFP/Getty)
In a bipartisan 86-12 vote, the Senate took the first steps toward passage of legislation to penalise countries that continue to buy Russian oil, gas and other exports after more than a year of negotiations.
The bill has dozens of backers from both major political parties and is seen as the main policy tribute to Graham, who died unexpectedly this month from a tear in his aorta. It imposes tariffs on goods from the world’s top five purchasers of Russia oil or natural gas, including China and India.
The legislation also includes sanctions against Putin; senior Russian political and military leaders; and Russian financial institutions and energy projects.
Namita Singh29 July 2026 09:00