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Ukraine: What happened on day 16 of Russia's invasion

Bombed building in Dnipro
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The BBC's Sarah Rainsford sent this picture of a bombed building in Dnipro

On day 16 of the invasion, Russian forces widened their attacks, targeting several Ukrainian cities that had previously escaped the worst of the onslaught.

The central city of Dnipro was among those directly targeted, with air strikes hitting a shoe factory, an apartment block and a nursery.

The BBC's Sarah Rainsford, reporting from the city, said it had previously been something of a safe haven for people fleeing cities under sustained Russian attack.

The mayor of Lutsk, in the west of the country, said air strikes on a military airfield there killed at least four Ukrainian soldiers.

Another airfield was hit in the southwestern city of Ivano-Frankivsk.

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave the go-ahead for foreign volunteers to fight against Ukrainian forces.

Speaking at a Russian security council meeting, he said those who wanted to volunteer to fight with Russia-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine should be allowed to.

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said there were 16,000 volunteers in the Middle East ready to fight alongside Russia-backed forces.

US officials said these could include Syrians skilled in urban combat. But analysts have questioned how useful such fighters would be to Russia, with one saying they may just become "cannon fodder".

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Watch: President Zelensky says Ukraine is 'on the way to victory'

Foreign fighters, including former and current British army personnel, have also been arriving in Ukraine to fight for the government in Kyiv.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said recently that 16,000 foreigners had volunteered for the cause, part of what he called an "international legion".

Mr Zelensky responded to Mr Putin's latest comments by saying "thugs from Syria" would be coming to kill people "in a foreign land".

In a defiant address, he said his country would be victorious in the war with Russia.

Map showing areas of Ukraine that are under Russian control
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Large Russian convoy near Kyiv redeploys

At the same time, fears grew of a possible renewed push towards Kyiv after satellite images taken by a US firm of a large Russian military convoy near the capital showed it had "largely dispersed and redeployed".

The convoy was last seen near Antonov Airport, north-west of Kyiv.

The firm that took the photos, Maxar Technologies, said parts of the convoy were in positions in surrounding towns.

Other parts are further north, with artillery now in firing positions.

Meanwhile in Kyiv itself barricades are being strengthened and defences set up in preparation for an assault on the city, our correspondent in the city Jeremy Bowen writes.

Control of the city will be crucial to any political outcome to the war and it is certain that Mr Putin and his generals are reassessing, regrouping and will not accept defeat

A handout satellite image made available by Maxar Technologies shows resupply trucks and probable multiple rocket launch deployment in Berestyanka, Ukraine
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Death of Russian general confirmed

Maj Gen Andrei KolesnikovImage source, Russian Eastern Military District
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Ukraine's military says Russian Maj Gen Andrei Kolesnikov has been killed

Western officials have confirmed that a third Russian major general has been killed in Ukraine, adding that he was from Russia's eastern military district.

Officials didn't name the general, but earlier Ukraine's military said Maj Gen Andrei Kolesnikov, commander of the 29th army of Russia's eastern district, had been killed.

Analysts have previously said that the presence of high-ranking military figures on or near the battlefield could be a sign that Russia's operations are not going to plan.

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Mystery Ukraine war drone crashes in Croatia

Drone crash site in Croatia, 11 Mar 22Image source, EPA
Image caption,
The debris suggests it was a Soviet-era drone used by the Ukrainian military

People in Croatia's capital, Zagreb, awoke on Friday to find that a military drone had crashed in the city overnight.

There was an explosion in the south-western Jarun district shortly after 23:00 (22:00 GMT). Residents found a crater and wreckage scattered close to student accommodation.

Zagreb's mayor, Tomislav Tomasevic, said "it's amazing that no-one was injured".

Croatia's president there was nothing to indicate the country was targeted.

Witness reports suggested the only person hurt was a man who fell off his bicycle as the drone hit the ground.

 

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