Russia-Ukraine crisis Highlights | Almost 300 people buried in 'mass grave' in Bucha outside Kyiv, says Mayor

People cycle past an artwork in support of Ukraine, as Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues, in London, on March 24, 2022. - Reuters

Highlights:

-- Almost 300 people buried in 'mass grave' in Bucha outside Kyiv, says Mayor
-- Pope Francis implicitly criticises Putin on invasion, considers Kyiv trip
-- Ukrainian journalist found dead near Kyiv
-- More sanctions against Russia being considered by the European Union
-- Russian missiles strike two central Ukraine cities - Local official
-- Pope Francis for the first time implicitly criticises Putin over Ukraine
-- Ukraine continues to advance against Russian forces near Kyiv, says UK
-- Ukraine takes back more territory near Kyiv
-- Ukrainian President Zelensky won’t discuss fuel depot attack
-- Ukrainian President says Russia preparing for new strikes in eastern Ukraine
-- Camp of Ukrainians at the US-Mexico border swells, as more refugees arrive
-- US investigators find evidence Russian oligarchs trying to evade sanctions -official
-- 53 landmark Ukraine sites damaged in Russian invasion: UN
-- War in Ukraine fuels fears among draft-age Russian youths
-- US to provide additional $300 million in security assistance to Ukraine
-- Red Cross heads again for Mariupol as Russia shifts Ukraine focus
-- US cancels ICBM test due to Russia nuclear tensions
-- Russia headed for recession, closed economy despite rouble rebound, says US
-- China tells EU it will pursue Ukraine peace in its own way
-- US will work with allies to transfer Soviet-made tanks to Ukraine
-- Zelenskyy: Retreating Russians leave many mines behind
-- Russia blames Ukraine for fuel depot blast; Kyiv denies role-- More hits on Russia’s economy, trade and financial system are coming: Ukraine Foreign Minister

Almost 300 people buried in 'mass grave' in Bucha outside Kyiv, says Mayor

Almost 300 people have been buried in a mass grave in Bucha, a commuter town outside Ukraine's capital Kyiv, its mayor told AFP Saturday after the Ukrainian army retook control of the key town from Russia.

"In Bucha, we have already buried 280 people in mass graves," mayor Anatoly Fedoruk told AFP by phone. He said the heavily destroyed town's streets are littered with corpses. (AFP)

Pope Francis implicitly criticises Putin on invasion, considers Kyiv trip

Pope Francis said on Saturday he was considering a trip to Kyiv and implicitly criticised Russian President Vladimir Putin over the invasion of Ukraine, saying a “potentate” was fomenting conflict for nationalist interests.

Francis made the comments, first to reporters on the plane taking him to Malta for a two-day visit, and then in a hard-hitting speech in the island’s presidential palace that left little doubt who he was referring to. (Reuters)

Ukrainian journalist found dead near Kyiv

Ukrainian photographer and documentary maker Maks Levin has been found dead near the capital Kyiv after going missing more than two weeks ago, presidential aide Andriy Yermak said on Saturday.

"He went missing in the conflict area on March 13 in the Kyiv region. His body was found near the village of Guta Mezhygirska on April 1," he said on Telegram. (AFP)

More sanctions against Russia being considered by the European Union

The European Union is working on further sanctions on Russia but any additional measures will not affect the energy sector, the EU's Economic Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni said.

Russian missiles strike two central Ukraine cities - Local official

Russian missiles hit two cities in central Ukraine early on Saturday, damaging infrastructure and residential buildings, the head of the Poltava region said. "Poltava. A missile struck one of the infrastructure facilities overnight," Dmitry Lunin wrote in an online post. "Kremenchuk. Many attacks on the city in the morning." Poltava city is the capital of the Poltava region, east of Kyiv, and Kremenchuk one of the area's major cities. There was no immediate information about possible casualties, Lunin said. Reuters could not immediately verify the report. (Reuters)

Pope Francis for the first time implicitly criticises Putin over Ukraine

Pope Francis came the closest he has yet to implicitly criticising President Vladimir Putin over Russia's invasion of Ukraine, saying on Saturday a "potentate" was fomenting conflicts for nationalist interests. (Reuters)

Ukraine continues to advance against Russian forces near Kyiv, says UK

Ukrainian forces continue to advance against withdrawing Russian forces in the vicinity of Kyiv, British military intelligence said on Saturday. Russian forces are also reported to have withdrawn from Hostomel airport near the capital, which has been subject to fighting since the first day of the conflict, Britain's Ministry of Defence said in a regular bulletin. (Reuters)

Ukraine takes back more territory near Kyiv

Ukraine recaptured more territory around Kyiv from Russian soldiers who left shattered villages and their own abandoned tanks as they moved away from the capital, while a disputed cross-border strike in Russia complicated peace talks on Friday. In the hamlet of Dmytrivka to the west of the capital, smoke was still rising from the wrecks of armored vehicles and the bodies of at least eight Russian soldiers lay in the streets, Reuters correspondents saw. (Reuters)

Ukrainian President Zelensky won’t discuss fuel depot attack

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky declined to comment on whether he ordered an attack on a Russian fuel depot. In an interview with FOX News, Zelensky said he does not discuss any orders he issues as commander in chief. Earlier, the secretary of Ukraine’s national security council denied allegations from Moscow that two Ukrainian helicopter gunships had struck the facility in the city of Belgorod north of the border at around dawn Friday. (AP)

Ukrainian President says Russia preparing for new strikes in eastern Ukraine

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russian troops are "slowly but noticeably" moving out of the north of the country, adding preparations are underway for more potential Russian strikes in the Donbas region and Kharkiv. Zelenskiy said the military situation in eastern Ukraine remained extremely difficult and Russia was preparing for new strikes there. (Reuters)

Camp of Ukrainians at the US-Mexico border swells, as more refugees arrive

Hundreds of Ukrainians are camping in the Mexican border city of Tijuana hoping to seek US asylum, a surge in arrivals just days after the Biden administration said the United States would accept up to 100,000 Ukrainians fleeing from war. (Reuters)

US investigators find evidence Russian oligarchs trying to evade sanctions -official

US prosecutors have found evidence that Russian oligarchs are trying to evade sanctions put in place to pressure Moscow to stop its invasion of Ukraine, the head of a new Justice Department task force said on Friday. (Reuters)

53 landmark Ukraine sites damaged in Russian invasion: UN

On Friday, the United Nations' cultural agency reported that at least 53 historical sites, religious buildings, and museums in Ukraine were damaged during Russia's invasion of the country. (The Kyiv Independent)

War in Ukraine fuels fears among draft-age Russian youths

As Moscow’s forces bog down in Ukraine, many young Russians of draft age are increasingly jittery about the prospect of being sent into combat. Making those fears particularly acute is an annual spring conscription that began Friday and aims to round up 134,500 men for a one-year tour of military duty. (AP)

US to provide additional $300 million in security assistance to Ukraine

The US Department of Defense will provide an additional $300 million in security assistance to Ukraine, to include laser-guided rocket systems, drones, and commercial satellite imagery services. "This announcement represents the beginning of a contracting process to provide new capabilities to Ukraine’s Armed Forces," Defense spokesman John Kirby said in a statement. (Reuters)

Red Cross heads again for Mariupol as Russia shifts Ukraine focus

A Red Cross convoy travelling to the Ukrainian city of Mariupol will make another attempt to evacuate civilians from the besieged port on Saturday as Russian forces looked to be regrouping for new attacks in the southeast. Mariupol, encircled since the early days of Russia's five-week-old invasion, has been Moscow's main target in Ukraine's southeastern region of Donbas. Tens of thousands there are trapped with scant access to food and water. (Reuters)

US cancels ICBM test due to Russia nuclear tensions

The U.S. military has canceled a test of its Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile that it had initially aimed only to delay in a bid to lower nuclear tensions with Russia during the war in Ukraine, the Air Force told Reuters on Friday. (Reuters)

Russia headed for recession, closed economy despite rouble rebound, says US

Punishing sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies on Moscow for invading Ukraine are pushing Russia into recession and starting to turn it back into a closed economy, a senior U.S. Treasury official said on Friday. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that the Treasury sees Russia as struggling with steep inflation, diminished exports and shortages despite a recovery of its rouble against the dollar. The official dismissed the rebound as driven by stringent capital controls and foreign exchange curbs, not market forces. (Reuters)

China tells EU it will pursue Ukraine peace in its own way

China offered the European Union assurances on Friday that it would seek peace in Ukraine but said this would be on its own terms, deflecting pressure for a tougher stance towards Russia. Premier Li Keqiang told EU leaders that Beijing would push for peace in "its own way", while President Xi Jinping said he hoped the EU would treat China "independently", in a nod to Europe's close ties with the United States. (Reuters)

US will work with allies to transfer Soviet-made tanks to Ukraine

The United States will work with allies to transfer Soviet-made tanks to Ukraine to bolster its defences in the Donbas region, the New York Times reported on Friday, citing a US official. The transfers, requested by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, would begin soon, the unnamed official said, according to the Times. (Reuters)

Zelenskyy: Retreating Russians leave many mines behind

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned his people early Saturday that retreating Russian forces were creating “a complete disaster” outside the capital as they leave mines across “the whole territory,” even around homes and corpses. He issued the warning as the humanitarian crisis in the encircled city of Mariupol deepened, with Russian forces blocking evacuation operations for the second day in a row. (AP)

Russia blames Ukraine for fuel depot blast; Kyiv denies role

A fiery explosion rocked a Russian fuel depot near the border around dawn Friday, and Moscow said Ukraine had attacked the facility, but Kyiv denied any involvement. There was no independent confirmation of details about the incident. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said two Ukrainian Mi-24 helicopters had entered Russian airspace “at an extremely low altitude” and attacked the civilian oil storage facility on the outskirts of the city of Belgorod. (AP)

More hits on Russia’s economy, trade and financial system are coming: Ukraine Foreign Minister

New sanctions against Russia's economy, trade, and financial system are expected, according to Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. This announcement follows his talk with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during which they discussed measures to boost Ukraine's economy and military so that it can continue to effectively counter Russian threats.