The head of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group, which has been fighting for control of Bakhmut since last summer, announced Friday he would withdraw his forces from the city on May 10 — the day after Russia’s Victory Day military parade — because of insufficient ammunition. In a letter published on his Telegram channel, Yevgeniy Prigozhin demanded that the Defense Ministry sign an order indicating the date on which it would replace Wagner forces involved in a brutal battle for the hotly contest city in eastern Ukraine.
Moscow has continued to vow retaliation for what it alleges was a drone attack at the Kremlin this week targeting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s residence. Russia accused Ukraine and the United States of involvement, which both countries have strongly denied. Putin will head a meeting of Russia’s security council on Friday, which may include discussion of the incident, state news agency Tass reported, citing Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Here’s the latest on the war and its ripple effects across the globe.
Russia says Ukraine sent drones to kill Putin; Kyiv denies it. What we know: The Kremlin accused Ukraine of trying to assassinate the Russian president in a drone attack in Moscow this week — an electrifying claim, quickly denied by Kyiv, that sparked concern and skepticism around the world.
Russian officials insist they have the right to retaliate, stoking fears in Ukraine that Russia could use the situation as a pretext for escalating its war. Jennifer Hassan and Mary Ilyushina break down how drones are functioning in the war in Ukraine and what we know so far about Russia’s claims, Kyiv’s response and how military experts are making sense of the incident.
