Ruined city of Avdiivka, Ukraine Avdiivka was on the front lines of war between Kyiv and Moscow for almost a decade. Fierce fighting raged there for months following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine nearly two years ago. The withdrawal was far less drawn out. When the Ukrainian military abandoned the town on Saturday, handing Russia its most important victory in months, it was rapid and ruthless. “Leave the 300 (wounded),” one soldier was purportedly ordered, “and burn everything.” Hours after Russian troops raised their flags over Avdiivka, one horrifying story has emerged of several injured soldiers who failed to escape – and were later killed as Russian troops reached their position. Members of Ukraine's National Guard Omega Special Purpose fire a SPG-9 anti-tank grenade launcher toward Russian troops in the front line town of Avdiivka, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Donetsk region, Ukraine November 8, 2023. The Ukrainian servicemen there were part of the 110th S...

Ukrainian officials have said they struck a Russian tugboat in the Black Sea using two Harpoon missiles on Friday. It is the first time Ukraine has announced it has destroyed a Russian vessel with Western-supplied weapons. A statement from the Ukrainian military says the Harpoons used were given to Ukraine by the US. Ukrainian military officials have said they struck the Russian Navy's Vasiliy Bekh tugboat in the Black Sea using two Harpoon missiles supplied by the US. The action marks the first time Ukraine has announced it has destroyed a Russian vessel with Western-supplied armaments. On Friday, the attack was announced on Ukraine's Armed Forces Strategic Communications Directorate's Telegram channel. It published a video purporting to show the anti-ship missile blowing up the vessel. Insider could not independently verify the footage. The head of the Odesa Regional Military Administration, Maxim Marchenko, said, "This morning, our naval forces struck th...

The Federal Government has met with envoys of the G7 countries in Nigeria, expressing worries over the Russian-Ukraine conflict with a call for peace to resolve the conflict. Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, met with the envoys on Friday in Abuja, saying that the Nigerian government called for peace and the use of diplomacy in resolving all differences. Onyeama said Nigeria does not condone the approach of aggression by Russia, calling on Russia to pull back. “Peace and diplomacy to be prioritised by both sides. “We support every effort being made to stop the aggression and Russian troops to return to Russia,” Onyeama said. Speaking to journalists after the closed-door meeting, German Ambassador to Nigeria, Birgitt Ory, who is also chair of the G7 Group, appreciated the African Union on its statement on the situation. Ory, who also commended Nigeria for putting in its weight, said Nigeria is a very important voice that the world needed to hear. He said that what is also c...

  More than 100 Ukrainians have died in the first day of war Brave Ukrainian woman confronts heavily armed Russian troops A Ukrainian woman is being hailed for her bravery after she confronted a heavily-armed Russian soldier and offered him sunflower seeds — so that they might bloom when he dies. The woman was captured on camera voicing her outrage as Russia invaded Ukraine on Thursday, with tanks rolling across the border and air strikes targeting major cities. Ukraine says it suffered 137 casualties on the first day of the war. The woman can be seen in the video asking the soldiers "Who are you?", to which a soldier standing in the street says: "We have exercises here. Please go this way." After asking if they are Russians, she said: "So what the f*** are you doing here?” As the soldiers tried to calm her down, the enraged woman said: "You’re occupants, you’re fascists! What the f*** are you doing on our land with all these guns? “Take these seeds and p...