RUSSIAN DRONES STRIKE SHOPPING CENTRE IN UKRAINE, KILLING FIVE

Russian drones struck a shopping centre in Pavlohrad, southeastern Ukraine, killing five people and wounding 67 others, according to Ukrainian officials. The attack occurred during daylight hours when streets were busy with pedestrians. Interior Minister Ivan Vyhivskyi stated that shops and vehicles were hit in the assault. Among the wounded were eight children, regional governor Oleksandr Hanzha reported. One report cited a total of seven deaths across five districts in Pavlohrad following the strikes, a discrepancy in casualty figures between accounts.

Pavlohrad, a key rail and logistics hub in Dnipropetrovsk region, has faced repeated Russian air strikes. Two other shopping centres in the Ukrainian cities of Zaporizhzhia and Sumy were targeted by Russian air strikes earlier in the week. President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the attack, stating: "The Russians used drones to kill people who were simply standing near shopping centres." Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha characterised the drone assault as a "tactic of coercion", saying Russia believed "relentless attacks on civilians can exhaust Ukrainians and force Ukraine into concession".

The strike follows a broader intensification of drone warfare between Russia and Ukraine, with daily launches reported across multiple regions. Russia separately reported a Ukrainian seaborne drone attack on the resort city of Sochi, claiming 28 people were wounded and three killed. The full-scale conflict between the two nations has now continued for more than four and a half years since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched the invasion. Recent peace talks involving envoys sent by US President Donald Trump have yielded few concrete results, according to reports of discussions held in Moscow and Kyiv.