Ukraine lawmaker shot dead in western city of Lviv: officials
Andriy Parubiy, a Ukrainian politician who previously served as the parliament speaker, has been shot dead in western city of Lviv, say officials.
Confirming the news, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on X:
Ukraine’s minister of internal affairs Ihor Klymenko and prosecutor general Ruslan Kravchenko have just reported the first known circumstances of the horrendous murder in Lviv. Andriy Parubiy was killed.
My condolences to his family and loved ones. All necessary forces and means are engaged in the investigation and search for the killer.
We will update with more information as soon as possible.
Key events
Here are some more images coming in from Zaporizhzhia today via the newswires:
Reuters has a bit more background on the Ukrainian former parliamentary speaker Andriy Parubiy who was shot dead in Lviv on Saturday.
Parubiy, 54, was a member of parliament and was parliamentary speaker from April 2016 to August 2019. He was one of the leaders of protests in 2013-14 calling for closer ties with the European Union.
He was also secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council from February to August 2014, a period when fighting began in eastern Ukraine and Russia annexed the Crimea peninsula.
Ukraine has now officially launched a murder investigation into the shooting of former parliamentary speaker Andriy Parubiy.
In a statement, the office of the the prosecutor general of Ukraine said the shooter was being sought for the “intentional homicide” of the well-known 54-year-old politician.
A shot fired at the heart of Ukraine, says former president
More tributes are coming in from colleagues in Ukraine’s parliament and the government, praising Parubiy’s contribution to Ukraine‘s fight for sovereignty and independence.
Former president Petro Poroshenko said on Telegram that the killing of Parubiy, who was a member of the parliamentary committee on national security, defence and intelligence, was “a shot fired at the heart of Ukraine”.
He said:
Andriy was a great man and a true friend. That is why they take revenge, that is what they are afraid of.
In a statement on Telegram, foreign minister Andrii Sybiha described Parubiy as “a patriot and statesman who made an enormous contribution to the defence of Ukraine’s freedom, independence and sovereignty. He was a man who rightfully belongs in the history books”.
Ukrainian prime minister Yulia Svyrydenko called for a prompt investigation of the murder, calling it “a profound loss” for the country.
She said:
You always remained a patriot of Ukraine and made a great contribution to the formation of our state.
Iryna Herashchenko, a lawmaker from the European Solidarity party, also confirmed to the Kyiv Independent that the victim of the shooting in Lviv was Andriy Parubiy.
According to the publication, Heraschenko said in a statement published on European Solidarity’s Facebook page (written in Ukrainian but translated into English by the online newspaper):
Our team is shocked. This is terror.
Andrii was one of the founders of the modern Ukraine … principled and decent, patriotic, intelligent.
The Kyiv Independent reports that authorities received an emergency call at around noon after the shooting in Lviv’s southern Frankivskyi city district. Police said the victim had died at the scene.
According to the publication, officials have not commented on potential suspects or a possible motive.
Ukraine lawmaker shot dead in western city of Lviv: officials
Andriy Parubiy, a Ukrainian politician who previously served as the parliament speaker, has been shot dead in western city of Lviv, say officials.
Confirming the news, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on X:
Ukraine’s minister of internal affairs Ihor Klymenko and prosecutor general Ruslan Kravchenko have just reported the first known circumstances of the horrendous murder in Lviv. Andriy Parubiy was killed.
My condolences to his family and loved ones. All necessary forces and means are engaged in the investigation and search for the killer.
We will update with more information as soon as possible.
The Russian defence ministry said on Saturday its troops had taken control of the village of Komyshuvakha in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, reports Reuters.
The ministry said its forces had successfully carried out strikes with high-precision weapons on Ukrainian missile and aviation enterprises, as well as military airfields in Ukraine.
Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield reports.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has thanked those working for Ukrainian security and developing its aviation in a post to mark Aviation Day.
Every year on the last Saturday of August, Ukraine celebrates Aviation Day, a holiday to honour military and civilian pilots and aviation industry workers.
In a post on X, Zelenskyy wote:
Aviation Day. A day to honor those for whom the skies became their workplace, their dream, and their true calling. Military and civilian. Pilots, crews, engineers, designers, air traffic controllers, technicians – each of you is doing a tremendous job for Ukraine. Our sky is under your protection.
I thank everyone who works for our security, for Ukraine’s strength in the air, and to all those developing our aviation. We will certainly do everything to ensure that Ukraine’s sky is peaceful and safe. Happy Aviation Day of Ukraine!
Here are some images coming in via the newswires of Zaporizhzhia:
Putin and Kim to join Xi at Chinese military parade in show of defiance to the west
Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un are among the world leaders who will attend a military parade with President Xi Jinping in Beijing next week, in a show of collective defiance amid western pressure.
No western leaders will be among the 26 foreign heads of state and government attending the parade next week – with the exception of Robert Fico, prime minister of Slovakia, a member of the European Union – according to the Chinese foreign ministry.
Against the backdrop of China’s growing military might during the Victory Day parade on 3 September, the three leaders will project a major show of solidarity.
Russia, which Beijing counts as a strategic partner, has been battered by multiple rounds of western sanctions imposed after its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with its economy on the brink of slipping into recession. Putin, wanted by the international criminal court, last travelled in China in 2024.
North Korea, a formal treaty ally of China’s, has been under UN security council sanctions since 2006 over its development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. Kim last visited China in January 2019.
Those attending the parade marking the formal surrender of Japan during the second world war will include Belarus president Aleksandr Lukashenko, Iran’s president Masoud Pezashkian, Indonesian president Prabowo Subianto and South Korea’s National Assembly speaker Woo Won-shik, said Chinese assistant foreign minister Hong Lei at a news conference.
Serbia’s president Aleksandar Vucic will also attend the parade.
The United Nations will be represented by under secretary general Li Junhua, who previously served in various capacities at the Chinese foreign ministry, including time as the Chinese ambassador to Italy, San Marino and Myanmar.
Russia says it shot down 20 Ukrainian drones on Saturday morning
The Russian defence ministry said it had shot down 20 Ukrainian drones, including 18 over Moscow-annexed Crimea, between 4am and 8am GMT on Saturday, reports Reuters.
The other two drones were shot down over Russia’s western Smolensk region.
In an earlier statement, Russia’s defence ministry said it had destroyed 86 Ukrainian drones overnight into Saturday. Reuters could not independently confirm the reports.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un met the families of soldiers killed fighting for Russia against Ukraine and offered condolences for their “unbearable pain”, state media said on Saturday, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Pyongyang has not confirmed the number of its soldiers that died fighting for Russia, though Seoul estimates it is about 600, with thousands more wounded.
South Korean and western intelligence agencies have said North Korea sent more than 10,000 soldiers to Russia in 2024 – primarily to the Kursk region – along with artillery shells, missiles and long-range rocket systems.
Kim gave a speech to the families on Friday, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported, after meeting only some of them last week at another public ceremony awarding honors to the soldiers.
According to KCNA, Kim said in his speech:
I thought a lot about other martyrs’ families who were not present there. So, I had this meeting arranged as I wanted to meet and console the bereaved families of all the heroes and relieve them of their sorrow and anguish even a little.
He pledged to erect a monument in the capital as well as a new street for the bereaved families, while the state would give full support to the troop’s children. He said:
My heart breaks and aches more at the sight of those little children.
I, our state and our army will take full responsibility for them and train them admirably as staunch and courageous fighters like their fathers.
North Korea only confirmed it had deployed troops to support Russia’s war in Ukraine in April and admitted that its soldiers had been killed in combat.
Three children among injured in Zaporizhzhia attack, says regional governor
Regional governor Ivan Fedorov said that three children were among the 24 injured in the south-eastern city of Zaporizhzhia after a Russian attack (see 8.59am BST). He confirmed that one person had been killed.
The Ukrainian air force recorded five missile and 24 drone hits at seven locations with debris falling on 21 sites, according to the statement on the Telegram messaging app, reports Reuters.
The attack on Zaporizhzhia cut power to 25,000 residents, Fedorov said. The local energy facility said the attack damaged its equipment and that repairs were under way.
As of early Saturday, Ukrainian state-owned railway Ukrzaliznytsia said it had repaired the damage to its infrastructure in the Kyiv region.
Ukraine’s military says it struck two Russian oil refineries overnight
Ukrainian military said on Saturday that it had struck Russian oil refineries in Krasnodar and Syzran overnight.
Kyiv’s military recorded multiple explosions and a fire at the Krasnodar oil refinery in Russia’s south, which produces 3m tonnes of light petroleum products annually, reports Reuters.
Russian authorities in Krasnodar said falling drone debris damaged one of the refinery’s units and a fire had broken out over an area measuring 300 square metres (3,230 square feet). That fire was later extinguished, authorities said.
There were no casualties, and employees were evacuated, authorities wrote on Telegram.
Russia’s defence ministry said it had downed 11 Ukrainian drones over the Krasnodar region overnight.
There was also a fire in the Syzran oil refinery area in Samara region, which had a processing capacity of 8.5m tonnes per year before August, the Ukrainian military said. Samara’s regional governor confirmed an attempt overnight to attack an industrial enterprise, but gave no further details.
Russia ‘shows utter disregard’ says Zelenskyy as one killed and dozens injured in overnight attack on Zaporizhzhia
One person has died and dozens have been injured, including children, in Zaporizhzhia after a reported Russian strike on a five-story residential building, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday morning.
“All emergency services are engaged at the site,” said Zelenskyy. He added that Volyn, Dnipro, Donetsk, Zhytomyr, Zaporizhzhia, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kyiv, Rivne, Sumy, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyi, Cherkasy, Chernivtsi and Chernihiv regions were all affected by the attack. “Numerous fires broke out, and civilian infrastructure – homes and businesses – suffered the most damage,” he said. According to Zelenskyy, Russia launched “nearly 540 drones, 8 ballistic missiles, and 37 other types of missiles against civilian life”.
In a social media post on X, Zelenskyy wrote:
We saw the world’s response to the previous strike. But now, as Russia once again shows its utter disregard for words, we count on real action.
It is absolutely clear that Moscow used the time meant for preparing a leaders-level meeting to organise new massive attacks.
The only way to reopen a window of opportunity for diplomacy is through tough measures against all those bankrolling the Russian army and effective sanctions against Moscow itself – banking and energy sanctions.
This war won’t stop with political statements alone; real steps are needed. We expect action from the US, Europe, and the entire world.
In other developments:
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Vladimir Putin will travel to China this weekend for what the Kremlin has called a “truly unprecedented” visit to his most important ally, which comes at a crunch moment in talks over Ukraine.
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Ukraine’s central Dnipropetrovsk region came under a “massive attack” early on Saturday, the region’s governor said, reporting strikes in Dnipro and Pavlograd. “The region is under a massive attack. Explosions are being heard,” Sergiy Lysak wrote on Telegram, warning residents to take cover. He said overnight Russian strikes killed two people in Dnipropetrovsk, which had been largely spared from intense fighting since Russia’s 2022 invasion. Kyiv acknowledged on Tuesday that Russian troops had entered the region.
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The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has warned that Donald Trump risked being “played” by Putin if a Russia-Ukraine peace summit did not go ahead. Macron expressed hope that the two-way meeting would take place but warned if Russia did not meet a Monday deadline to agree to the talks, “it will show again President Putin has played President Trump”.
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Zelenskyy said he expected to continue talks with European leaders next week on “Nato-like” commitments to protect Ukraine, adding that Trump should also be involved. “We need the architecture to be clear to everyone,” he said, adding that he wanted to tell Trump “how we see it”.
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EU defence ministers meeting in Copenhagen on Friday expressed “broad support” for expanding the bloc’s military training mission to operate inside Ukraine, the EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said. “The EU has already trained over 80,000 Ukrainian soldiers,” Kallas wrote on X. “We must be ready to do more.”
