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Russian mothers are encouraging their soldier sons to kill civilians and children in Ukraine, according to Ukrainian authorities. A call tracked by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and shared on Telegram this week is one example of Russian soldiers being egged on during the conflict.

Vladimir Putin's forces have been left out in the open after key positions were reportedly 'exposed' on Google Maps.Writing on Twitter, the Ukrainian Armed Forces said that the search engine had given access to stunning photographs which display important strategic locations of the Russian army.Sites said to be visible online include a nuclear weapons storage base in the city of Murmansk in northwest Russia, and air bases in the east of the country. Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetso and Russia's advanced Su-57 fighter jet can also be seen.

Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is a “catastrophic mistake,” say Kremlin insiders, and the Russian leader could authorise the use of nuclear weapons to secure some kind of victory. Putin sees the recovery of Russia’s empire as his “historic mission” but some elite Russians fear the massive sanctions imposed by the West are too high a price to pay.

Vladimir Putin has delivered a chilling warning claiming Russia has successfully launched an enormous intercontinental ballistic missile known as ‘Satan-2’.

Vladimir Putin has has launched a long-range missile known as 'Satan II' in a chilling warning to those who "threaten" Russia.Moscow's ministry of defence claims that the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile tested at the Plesetsk cosmodrome.The Russian president claimed the show of strength would be "food for thought for those who try to threaten Russia", according to reports. Specifications of the mighty missile have not been officially revealed however it is understood to be able to fire up to 12 nuclear warheads in one flight, all the while dodging anti-missile systems.It is referred to as a long-range weapon with good reason as the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile is believed to boast a maximum flight distance of 6,000 milesTerrifyingly the missile is said to be capable of targeting an area the size of France, the Mirror reports.State TV broadcasted Putin receiving confirmation from the military that the missile had been launched from Plesetsk in Russia's northwest and hit targets in the Kamchatka peninsula in the far east of the country.

Mauripol have made a last-ditch effort to defend the besieged city by holing up in a Soviet steel factory with valuable Russian hostages, it has been claimed.Mauripol has been under constant bombardment by Vladimir Putin's forces since the conflict began and has been all but destroyed by heavy shelling killing around 20,000 residents.Those that remain have now retreated to the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works, a four-square-mile steel plant with a network of underground tunnels. Speaking from the siege, one of Ukraine's top commanders, Maj.

Vladimir Putin has reportedly sent over 500,000 Ukrainians to a remote corner of Russia and barred them from leaving as he looks to strengthen his control over the war-torn country. According to Ukraine’s Permanent Representative to the UN Sergiy Kyslytsya, more than 500,000 Ukrainians, including 121,000 children have been “forcibly transferred” to Russia.

In response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Belarus’ support of the war, Wimbledon is reportedly planning to bar Russian and Belarusian players from the Grand Slam tennis tournament which begins in London on June 27. Sportico reported that the event, organized by the All England Club, will break from the rest of the tennis world by refusing to allow Russians to compete — this would include current world No. 2 Daniil Medvedev. The New York Times, citing a highly placed international tennis official, said the ban is expected to extend to Belarusian players as well.

Russia, with a fuming pal of Russian President Vladimir Putin saying the pair will "will have to answer in full for their actions".Shaun Pinner, 48, and Aiden Aslin, 28, were targeted by the deputy head of the Kremlin's powerful security council, Dmitry Medvedev.The former Russian president and prime minister said the pair would not be treated as combatants under the Geneva Conventions, meaning they would not receive the rights a prisoner of war would.Medvedev's show trials for the two men come after a failed swap deal for Putin's "prince of darkness" Viktor Medvedchuk, currently held by Ukrainian forces. The British captives have made an appeal to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson several times on multiple Russian state TV outlets.

Russia's "illegal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine" shows how much Vladimir Putin's forces have retreated over the past two weeks.The map, released by the British Ministry of Defence, is based of the latest defence intelligence, the ministry said.It shows that Russia appears to have lost much of its footing in the north of Ukraine, around Kyiv, Chernihiv and Sumy, near the border with the aggressor. The British Ministry of Defence map instead shows Russia's efforts concentrated on the east, south east and south.

Vladimir Putin’s spies have “almost certainly” infiltrated American intelligence agencies, a host of former FBI agents and CIA officers have claimed. And as the war in Ukraine continues to plateau for the desperate despot, experts fear the information could be more valuable and critical than ever.

Russian troops could be turning back the clock by more than a century after they were reportedly found to be using 'dart' weapons usually associated with World War 1.Locals in the Ukrainian city of Bucha say their homes and gardens have been showered with lethal metal darts, which are thought to have been released from Russian artillery shells during last month's devastating occupation of the town.Military experts say that the tiny projectiles known as flechettes are not usually seen in modern warfare, having been widely used most recently in the Vietnam War.Despite their tiny size at around three centimetres in length, the weapons are highly deadly and can penetrate soft cover to inflict lethal damage when fired at high speed.Local woman Svitlana Chmut told the Washington Post that she had returned home in the last few days to find the darts embedded in her car and scattered across her garden."If you look closely on the ground around my house, you will find a lot more of them," said Ms Chmut, 54.The artillery is not prohibited by international conventions, but some human rights groups criticise their use as “indiscriminate weapons” which could seriously injure civilians even if they were aimed at military formations.Commenting on their use in Ukraine, Amnesty International said: "They should never be used in built-up civilian areas."For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here.The darts are not thought to pose a danger to people inside buildings.Meanwhile Britain is set to send Stormer armoured missiles to Ukraine to help blast Vladimir Putin's aircraft out of the sky, according to reports.It is understood the 13-tonne vehicles can be

war still raging in Ukraine, Russian leader Vladimir Putin faces a “second front” in the east with massively destructive wildfires breaking out across Siberia.Towering flames reach into apocalyptic black skies across three vast regions of Siberia – Omsk, Tyumen and Krasnoyarsk.As Putin’s war reached a new intensity 1,700 miles away in the Donbas, a woman in Tyumen asked: “Why are the gods so angry?”Terrified wild animals fleeing the inferno were captured on video as the fires tore across acres of permafrost. It’s an unusually early start of 2022 wildfire season in Russia, with massive fires raging across vast spaces of Western, Central, Southern and Eastern Siberia.

Ukraine to help blast Vladimir Putin's aircraft out of the sky, according to reports.Britain will soon send the Stormer High Velocity Missile (HVM) launchers, the Sun reports, with the Ministry of Defence demonstrating them for Ukrainians on Salisbury Plain, southern England, two weeks ago.It is understood the 13-tonne vehicles can be flown to the war on C-17 transport planes in days.The news comes as Putin's war machine begins a new phase of its bloody invasion with a full-scale offensive to take control of the mostly-Russian speaking Donbas in the east.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had pleaded with the West for greater firepower, and now he has had his wish granted. Dr Alan Mendoza, of security think tank the Henry Jackson Society, told the Sun: “These vehicles are the best kit yet sent to Ukraine and will leave Russian pilots quaking.

Ukrainian comrades were "shredded and mutilated" by Russian tanks on the frontline.The sniper nicknamed Wali, who fought alongside the Kurds against ISIS in Syria, in March answered the call of Ukraine's President for foreign troops to join the war effort, saying: "I want to help people, it's as simple as that."Ever since, he has been helping to pick off enemy soldiers and giving Vladimir Putin's forces a good trolling in the process. However, in his latest update, the deadly marksman told of a close shave with a fleet of Russian tanks that saw two Ukrainian soldiers have limbs blown off in a gnarly death. He said that over the weekend he and a comrade called Shadow went to a position surrounded by Russian tanks, in a small forest having earlier left Kyiv when Vladimir Putin's forces retreated.

Oleksandr Usyk is hoping for a heavyweight unification bout with Tyson Fury after the Gypsy King faces Dillian Whyte this weekend. The Ukrainian Usyk has stated that he'll be watching and studying Fury's approach in the fight with the hope that he'll face the heavyweight champion next after he faces Anthony Joshua for the second time.

Vladimir Putin, Ukranian forces appear to have destroyed a £11million Russian Ka-52 helicopter with a rocket launcher worth less than £100.The incident is said to have occurred in the heavily contested Kharkiv region where the two sides are battling intensely.According to the Ukrainian military unit Operational Command 'East' the attack happened as Putin’s helicopters flew low over the terrain under cover of darkness.On the group’s Facebook page, an officer named Yaroslav described the attack.He said: “At night, enemy helicopters went very low. They circled over our positions, not even allowing us to raise our heads.“And an anti-aircraft gunner fired two missiles on them.

Russian tank appearing to drive over one of its own soldiers.Narrated by Ukrainian soldiers, the clip begins with the tank coming out of a container and turning left, where a soldier appears to be laying on the ground. The figure is visible moving around on the ground in the overhead clip, but despite this the armoured vehicle continues in its path, appearing to drive over the soldier."Russians are considered expendables by Russians," commented one person after the video was shared to a threat on Reddit dedicated to information on the conflict in Ukraine."Such is the respect for human life by Russian soldiers," added another person.A third added: "I don't f****** understand these Russians they're all just a bunch of untrained maniacs in camo...

West Ham United star Andriy Yarmolenko has revealed that his relationship with Ukraine team-mate Anatoliy Tymoshchuk has completely broken down following Russia's invasion of their homeland.Tymoshchuk has been widely condemned for refusing to speak out against Vladimir Putin, particularly as he's Russian Premier League side Zenit St Petersburg's current assistant manager, and was subsequently stripped of his coaching license and titles by the Ukrainian FA for continuing to work for a "club of the aggressor".Earlier this week, Yarmolenko said he spoke to his former international team-mate and close friend on the phone and asked him "how do you sleep at night?""He replied 'I don’t sleep'," Yarmolenko revealed, according to Zorya Londonsk. "Then he called me.

Ukraine as the war enters a deadly new phase, according to the Ukrainian president.Missile blasts and troop movements were witnessed across the Donbas region on Monday, only days after Vladimir Putin withdrew Russian forces from the area around Kyiv to focus on capturing land near the Russian border.Volodymr Zelenskyy described the development as the beginning of the "Battle of Donbas" and said the Ukrainian army had been expecting the latest assault.Striking a defiant tone in the rousing speech, the actor-turned-President claimed he was confident his army could repel the invaders.He said in a video address: "We can now say that Russian forces have started the battle of the Donbas, for which they have long prepared."No matter how many Russian soldiers are driven there, we will fight. We will defend ourselves.

Vladimir Putin has handed out military honours to soldiers reportedly involved in the mass killing of civilians in Bucha.The Russian President's shocking decision to award Russia's 64th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade with the esteemed title of 'Guards', comes despite evidence mounting of their involvement in the murder at least 403 innocent people in the Ukrainian town.The soldiers withdrew from the city of Bucha earlier in the month after allegedly filling several graves with tortured civilian corpses.They left a trail of destruction and suffering in neighbourhoods around Kyiv, Ukrainian authorities say.In a presidential decree from the Kremlin, Putin praised the troops for "mass heroism and courage, fortitude and courage shown by the personnel of the brigade in combat operations to protect the Fatherland and state interests in armed conflicts."Describing them as a model to be followed by other soldiers, he added: "Skilful and resolute actions of the unit's personnel during the special military operation in Ukraine are an example of the performance of military duty, courage, selflessness and high professionalism."I am convinced that you, soldiers and officers - guardsmen, will continue to be faithful to the Oath, serve the Motherland with honour, and reliably ensure the safety and peaceful life of our citizens."Last week it was claimed that a Ukrainian teenager was raped, murdered and then dumped in a mass grave in Bucha in a sickening act of violence.For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here.A family friend of Karina Yershova, 16, said she was shot in the back of the head before she was thrown in the "trash".Speaking on Facebook, a