Russia and Ukraine shifting to long-range aerial attacks

Funeral workers lower a coffin into a grave during a funeral ceremony of Ukrainian serviceman Sviatoslav Romanchuk. Pic/AP

Russia's Defence Ministry said Thursday that its air defences shot down 10 Ukrainian air-launched missiles over Crimea and 10 over the Russian city of Belgorod, as both sides in the war pounded each other with long-range aerial strikes continuing late into the night while fighting along the front line remained largely deadlocked.

The White House, meanwhile, said US intelligence officials have determined that Moscow has acquired ballistic missiles from North Korea and fired at least one of them into Ukraine on December 30. It also is seeking close-range ballistic missiles from Iran, Washington said.

One person was wounded by the falling debris of a downed aerial target in Sevastopol, a major port and the largest city on the Russia-annexed Crimean Peninsula, regional Gov. Mikhail Razvozhayev said. More than 100 people also had to be evacuated from their homes in the peninsula after another attack late Thursday when shells fell but did not explode, Razvozhayev said.

Nepal bars its citizens from working in Russia and Ukraine

Nepal's government has banned its citizens from going to Russia or Ukraine for employment, saying many have been recruited by the Russian army to fight in the conflict there. The country's Department of Employment issued a notice saying it had reports of Nepalese nationals in the Russian army being killed and was further investigating the matter. It is believed that at least 10 Nepalis have been killed in the fighting and four more have been captured by the Ukraine side. It is also believed that there are some Nepalis fighting as hired soldiers on the Ukrainian side, but that has not been confirmed.

10
No of Nepalis killed in Ukraine war

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