(Image by NEIVANMADE)
Update at 10:30 PM EDT/5:30 AM local time in Ukraine:
Air raid alerts are now back up for the entire country with the exception of Odesa, Mykolaiv, and Kherson Oblasts. This is a second set of attacks just before dawn.
Very loud explosions in Kyiv
— Xenta (@xenta.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 10:01 PM
Original post starts here:
Air raid alerts indicating the threat of both Russian air launched missiles and drone swarms have been up for the past several hours.
Ukraine is under a heavy russian missile attack launched from the Black Sea, with their planes reportedly heading to launch cruise missiles‼️
It’s going to be yet another long night.
Please keep us in your thoughts.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 7:10 PM
At this very moment, in the dead of night, Ukraine is facing a massive combined missile and drone assault by russia.
— Iryna Voichuk (@irynavoichuk.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 7:08 PM
Art by Nikita Titov
— Iryna Voichuk (@irynavoichuk.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 7:08 PM
When I started writing tonight’s update they’d come down in western Ukraine. Now, at 9:10 PM EDT/4:10 AM local time, they’re down except for Kyiv Oblasts and the eastern oblasts that border Russia – Sumy, Kharkiv, Russian occupied Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Russian occupied Crimea. Remember, the alerts for Russian occupied Luhansk and Crimea are always up 24/7/365.
The cost!
This is Tymofii. Russia killed him with a cluster-loaded Iskander missile strike on Kryvyi Rih. He was only 3 years old.
#Ukraine— Iryna Voichuk (@irynavoichuk.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 5:51 AM
The video I did NOT include last night was of the first responders trying to resuscitate Tymofii on site before transporting him. I’ve watched, you don’t need to.
“Tragically, three-year-old Tymofii died in the hospital today. Seven-year-old Radyslav. Arina, who will forever be seven as well. Nine-year-old Herman. Fifteen-year-old Danylo. Fifteen-year-old Mykyta. Fifteen-year-old Alina. Kostiantyn, who will forever be sixteen.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 7:17 AM
Nikita – seventeen. These are the children killed by a Russian ballistic missile strike on Kryvyi Rih.”- President Zelenskyy
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 7:17 AM
these kids will never grow old, Russia killed them in Kryvyi Rih yesterday.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 11:47 AM
As I wrote last night: there cannot be, there will not be a real truce, ceasefire, or negotiations to end the war because Putin does not want an end to the war unless it is on his terms. And his terms is that he gets Ukraine because he believes that Ukraine belongs to him.
I expect that Trump’s minerals deal/shakedown attempt will also never go anywhere but round after round of talks and consultations because the Ukrainians know it doesn’t get them anything, give Trump everything, and sets the conditions for Trump and Putin to divvy up Ukraine between them.
Here is President Zelenskyy’s address from earlier today. Video below, English transcript after the jump.
Staying Silent About the Fact That It Is Russia Killing Children with Ballistic Missiles Is Wrong and Dangerous – Address by the President
5 April 2025 – 20:30
Dear Ukrainians!
All day today – following the Russian strike on Kryvyi Rih – every effort has been made in the city to save lives. Some of the wounded – those in critical condition – were transported to Dnipro. Doctors are doing their utmost to save as many lives as possible. I am grateful to everyone involved in this effort – those who responded immediately and those still helping. This strike is one of the darkest chapters for Kryvyi Rih. Tragically, 18 people were killed, including 9 children. The youngest was just 3 years old. My condolences to all their families and loved ones.
Last night and today, many around the world voiced their position in response to this strike – a clear rejection of Russian terror. To everyone who sees this and does not close their eyes, who speaks the truth clearly and directly – not only we in Ukraine, but the entire world should be grateful. Staying silent about the fact that it is Russia killing children with ballistic missiles is wrong and dangerous. It only emboldens the scum in Moscow to continue the war and keep ignoring diplomacy. Weakness has never ended a war. That’s why I’m thankful to every country whose representatives have spoken out – leaders, foreign ministers, embassies.
A Russian ballistic missile – targeting the street of an ordinary city, striking residential buildings – and after that, an additional drone strike. One more person killed, more people wounded. Russia must be held accountable for everything it has done. To end this war, it is necessary to put pressure on them – real pressure – without wasting time on empty talk.
Days of mourning will be declared in Kryvyi Rih for those who were killed. Right now, Ukrainian cities, our villages are united in their support for Kryvyi Rih. From Dnipro and Kharkiv to Uzhhorod, from Odesa to Kyiv – all regions, all regional centers, many communities are showing solidarity and honoring the memory of the fallen. I thank everyone for this absolutely rightful emotion – the emotion of support and unity that strengthens our entire nation. And I want to thank each and every one of you whose heart felt the pain and anger over what happened.
We must all remember: the war continues. We must support our defense, our warriors, our country. We must do everything to strengthen Ukraine’s position, and to ensure that as many people in the world as possible know and truly feel what is happening and why it matters to stand with Ukraine, especially in moments like this.
I also want to acknowledge the people who distinguished themselves at the site of the strike in Kryvyi Rih – those who were working there yesterday and today. The Main Directorate of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in the Dnipro region – Oleksandr Parubenko, Vasyl Denysiuk, Svitlana Cherednychenko. Psychologists – Serhii Haidamaka, Tetiana Kutsenko. The men from the State Mining Rescue Unit of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine – Pavlo Doroshenko, Yevhen Bilokrynytskyi, Andrii Siryi. Medics – Hryhorii Maksymenko, Dmytro Fursenko. The National Guard – Vladyslav Tychyna, Oleksandr Vasylchyk. The National Police – Ivan Trush, Illia Bohdan, Mykola Harmash, Volodymyr Titov. I thank you. I thank all your colleagues, everyone in the city’s utility services who cares for people, all the doctors and nurses, every volunteer who joined in to help, and everyone who cares for our people and our country. It’s important that we all stand together.
Glory to Ukraine!
Georgia:
#GeorgiaProtests
Day 129There hasn’t been a single day without a protest in Georgia since November 28, 2024.
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 3:04 PM
Day 129. As people gathered, “Antsukhelidze is immortal” was displayed with candles, underlining the new popular motto in resistance against the regime’s imposition of the Russian narrative of history.
Antsukhelidze is a national hero tortured to death in 2008. #GeorgiaProtests
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 1:48 PM
1/ The Prosecutor’s Office froze the accounts of the funds based on a request from Vato Shakarishvili’s organization. These funds, alongside other charitable activities, were helping collect money for individuals who were fined during the protests.
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 3:08 PM
2/ As the journalist told RFE, his protest was specifically about the freezing of the funds, which left individuals with serious health issues without the necessary financial support. According to him, this is why he approached Shakarishvili and called him a slave.
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 3:08 PM
3/ The moment is also captured in footage filmed by Giorgi Mamniashvili, where the journalist approaches Shakarishvili and calls him a slave. Following this, Vato Shakarishvili is seen moving towards him, preparing to strike.
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 3:08 PM
4/ Shakarishvili does not deny striking the journalist. According to him, he slapped Mamniashvili. The MIA of Georgia has not yet commented on the incident
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Germany:
Eutelsat’s chief executive Eva Berneke told Reuters that Eutelsat has provided #Ukraine with its high-speed satellite internet for about a year, while the German government has borne the entire cost. This is a previously undisclosed assistance from the German government!
1/2
— German Aid to Ukraine (@deaidua.org) April 4, 2025 at 11:20 AM
According to Berneke, less than 1,000 terminals are connecting users in Ukraine to Eutelsat’s network, while they are currently working on getting up to between 5,000 and 10,000 terminals and are in negotiations with the German government about financing the increase.
2/2
— German Aid to Ukraine (@deaidua.org) April 4, 2025 at 11:19 AM
Back to Ukraine.
The reason:
💙💛 The AFU soldier returns home, where his daughter is waiting for him – a little sunshine with outstretched hands. He picks her up in his arms, hugging her tightly, and in his embrace all the hardships of war disappear. Only the warmth of her breath and a quiet whisper: “Daddy, you’re home.”
— Vitalis Viva (@vitalisviva.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 6:12 PM
President Zelenskyy has instructed Ukraine’s domestic security service to investigate the leak of the latest US proposal for profiting from Ukrainian assets, said government officials, in a probe that includes the use of polygraph tests. www.ft.com/content/9f75…
— Christopher Miller (@christopherjm.ft.com) April 5, 2025 at 4:51 AM
From The Financial Times:
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has instructed Ukraine’s domestic security service to investigate the leak of the latest US proposal for profiting from Ukrainian assets, said government officials, in a probe that includes the use of polygraph tests.
The investigation comes amid deepening tensions between Kyiv and the Trump administration over the terms of a proposed deal on critical minerals and energy assets.
Ukrainian officials say they were caught off guard by the scope of the latest US demands, and view as politically untenable parts of Washington’s proposal for profiting from their country’s infrastructure.
President Donald Trump accused the Ukrainian president this week of “trying to back out” of the deal, adding that Zelenskyy would face “big problems” if he did not sign it soon.
The Ukrainian officials said that lie detector tests had been administered on staff across several ministries, but declined to give further details or specify how many individuals had been questioned.
The office of Ukraine’s president declined to comment. The security service said in a statement that it works within the law to protect Ukraine’s security and keeps certain details about its activities confidential.
Polygraph tests are controversial and the science behind them has been questioned, but Ukraine’s law enforcement agencies have frequently used them for purposes including criminal investigations and screening foreigners looking to join the army.
The investigation follows the publication of details from the draft agreement on March 26 by opposition MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak, who said he had obtained a copy. The Financial Times separately obtained the document and published its contents the following day.
Zelenskyy told the FT at a briefing on March 28 he found it “strange” the US document had leaked. “I wonder who is transmitting this information,” he said.
The Trump administration’s latest proposal significantly expands on its earlier offer, superseding an initial framework deal agreed with Kyiv in February. That agreement was later abandoned after Zelenskyy’s bust-up with President Donald Trump and vice-president JD Vance in the White House.
Crucially, the revised proposal still offers no formal security guarantees to Ukraine.
Trump’s Treasury secretary Scott Bessent has argued that formal security guarantees are unnecessary, because any US investment in Ukraine’s critical minerals sector would in itself deter further Russian aggression — a view not shared in Kyiv.
The revised terms form part of Trump’s plan to end Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine and recoup billions of dollars he believes the US is owed for having helped Kyiv defend itself against Moscow’s invasion.
Last Friday, Zelenskyy rejected Trump’s insistence that billions of dollars of military assistance from the US to date should be viewed as loans to be repaid through the agreement.
The new proposal calls for the creation of a joint supervisory board to manage revenues from oil, gas and mineral projects, covering all major energy assets across the country.
Senior Ukrainian officials have raised concerns that it could undermine their nation’s sovereignty, send future revenues abroad and disrupt integration with the EU.
“We cannot accept any arrangement that undermines our EU path,” Zelenskyy said last week.
Kyrylo Budanov, Ukraine’s intel chief, believes Russia won’t substantially reduce its army after the war, despite budget relief from combat payouts.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 1:10 PM
Kryvyi Rih:
The death toll from Russia’s ballistic missile attack in Zelensky’s hometown of Kryvyi Rih has risen to 18, including 9 children, with 61 other people injured, including 12 children, according to Ukraine’s State Emergency Service.
— Christopher Miller (@christopherjm.ft.com) April 5, 2025 at 12:04 AM
Despite the fact that an apartment building and a children’s playground were at the center of the strike, Russia cynically claims a “high-precision strike” had targeted “a meeting of unit commanders and Western instructors” in a restaurant.
— Christopher Miller (@christopherjm.ft.com) April 5, 2025 at 12:04 AM
Ukraine’s General Staff has identified the weapon used in yesterday evening’s deadly attack. It said, “Russian forces struck Kryvyi Rih with an Iskander-M ballistic missile with a cluster warhead, which is designed to hit a large area and a large number of people.”
— Christopher Miller (@christopherjm.ft.com) April 5, 2025 at 12:04 AM
WARNING!! WARNING!! GRAPHIC CONTENT!! WARNING!! WARNING!!
Police published a bodycam footage of the first moments after yesterday’s russian missile strike on Kryvyi Rih, which killed 18 people, including 9 children
Some of the things said: “these kids are gone”, “there is a little boy still breathing”, “another missile coming, run”, “his leg is torn off”
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 10:28 AM
This is unspeakable evil. I have no words to describe it anymore.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 10:28 AM
ALL CLEAR!!!!
Local media reports that Russia killed Radyslav Yatsko in Kryvyi Rih. He was just 7 years old.
The family was on their way home when an explosion occurred. Little Radyslav was in the back seat behind his father, which is where the main impact struck.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 6:56 AM
Radyslav’s father, Rodion, is currently hospitalized with a concussion, multiple injuries, and damage to his eyes. His mother, Anastasia, and 8-month-old sister, Adelina, were also injured. Adelina suffered shrapnel wounds and is being treated at home.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 6:56 AM
The grandmother, who was also in the car, is in the hospital as well.
I just have no words from these monsters anymore
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 6:55 AM
🕯🇺🇦 People bring flowers and toys to the site of the rocket attack. Yesterday’s attacks in Kryvyi Rih killed 19 people, 9 of them children. More than 60 others were injured.
— Vitalis Viva (@vitalisviva.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 7:04 AM
🕯🇺🇦 Yesterday was a warm and sunny spring day. Kids were playing on the swings, teenagers were gathered on benches – enjoying life, which was just beginning for them all.
To destroy 19 lives, the russians needed only a minute and a missile launched by someone’s indifferent push of a button.— Vitalis Viva (@vitalisviva.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 7:04 AM
Russian occupied Luhansk Oblast:
Russian BUK-M2 air defense system destroyed yesterday by a drone strike in the Luhansk region, Sokolohirsk. 50km from the front line. t.me/dosye_shpion…
— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 10:14 AM
The Kursk cross border offensive:
Detonation of Russian missiles as a result of the tonight’s strike. Somewhere in the direction of Sudzha, Kursk region.
— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 7:57 AM
A Ukrainian MiG-29 squad demolished two buildings with Russian assault units and ammo near Ghuevo, Kursk region.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 11:22 AM
Toretsk:
Ukrainian fighters from the “Luhansk” regiment of the “Liut” brigade tried evacuating from Toretsk, but their M113 hit a mine, leaving them cut off in enemy rear. Despite shelling and injuries, they broke through and safely completed the evacuation. Full video: t.me/wartranslated
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 6:45 AM
Saransk, Republic of Mordovia, Russia:
This morning, Ukrainian drones continued targeting Russia’s only optical fiber plant in Saransk, a key producer of fiber optics for drones widely used by Russian forces in combat.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 4:30 AM
That’s enough for tonight.
Your daily Patron!
There are no new Patron skeets or videos tonight. Here is some adjacent material.
Cry “Havoc” and let slip the groundhogs of war!
Ukrainian aerial reconnaissance witnessed a brutal groundhog battle somewhere on the front line. t.me/fokin_live/140
— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) April 5, 2025 at 7:15 AM
Open thread!
AlaskaReader
Thanks Adam
Can’t thank you enough,
Gin & Tonic
The US Ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget Brink, a career FSO appointed by Biden, posted a Tweet about the missile strike in Kryvyy Rih somehow managing to avoid mention of the source of the missile. Ukrainian Twitter has not been diplomatic in response. Craven cowardice.
funlady75
thank you very much Adam.. so sad for the children…
Adam L Silverman
@AlaskaReader: You’re most welcome.
Adam L Silverman
@funlady75: You’re welcome.
HeiSokoly
@Gin & Tonic: She was Trump’s ambassador to Slovakia in his first term. And hadn’t said the name “Russia” since he won, until being publicly shamed today, nor has she said much of anything since November but retweeting Rubio’s triumphalism—until the past two weeks, when she started a hasty and unconvincing spate of damage control, going to events in Kyiv again.
There is a reason she was not fired nor did she resign like so many other ambassadors when Trump won, either time.
Edit: She looks absolutely miserable at those recent photo ops on her feed—one of which involved her demanding Ukraine teach us how to drone properly—and wretchedly unhealthy, as if she has not had a full night’s sleep in forever AND went for the cheap option on her magical portrait, or didn’t pay the artist.
Jay
Thank you, Adam.
Jay
DJTdiot is trying to negotiate a Piece of Ukraine, not peace.
Adam L Silverman
I just added this as an update up top:
Adam L Silverman
@Jay: You’re welcome.
Adam L Silverman
@Adam L Silverman: It’s now the entire country.
Adam L Silverman
@Adam L Silverman:
Adam L Silverman
@Adam L Silverman:
Adam L Silverman
@Adam L Silverman:
pieceofpeace
Thank you, Adam.
Chetan Murthy
@Gin & Tonic: I’ll ask b/c I don’t know. And I stress that I really don’t know. She’s career FSO. Is it possible that she thinks that if she’s replaced, her successor will be enough worse, that she’s willing to abase herself to the Orange Toadstool ? And that’s why she’s saying these things? I seem to remember she was pretty good under Biden. But maybe my memory is faulty.
ETA: I remember that Kurt Volker was pretty terrible, but then after Trump left office, Volker seemed to get a lot better. Um, clearly these aren’t profiles in courage. I guess I wonder whether, at this point, this is the best we can get from American diplomats.
Gin & Tonic
@Chetan Murthy: Whenever she is replaced, it’s guaranteed to be with someone worse.
Adam L Silverman
@pieceofpeace: You’re welcome.
Sister Inspired Revolver of Freedom
I am left bereft of speech at the horrors perpetrated on Ukraine daily, sometimes hourly.
Thank you Adam.