This is the end of our live blog for today. Euronews is signing off. 

Serbians take to the streets in support of Russia 

Protestors have held a demonstration in Serbia in support of Vladimir Putin, after Serbia voted against Russia at the United Nations. 

Hundreds of protestors gathered in the Serbian capital Belgrade, carrying pictures of the Russian President and T-shirts emblazoned with the letter Z, the symbol of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. 

The Friday rally was organised to protest against Serbia's vote to expel Russia from the UN Human Rights Council. 

Serbia remains the only country in Europe that has not imposed sanctions on Russia, but right-wing groups are angry that Belgrade is undermining Moscow internationally. 

Local media say that masked protesters lit flares and smoke bombs outside the offices of the Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic during the protest and placed a Russian flag on the presidency building.

Similar protests have been held across Serbia since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine. Many Serbians are loyal to Russia, believing Moscow was provoked by the West to launch the invasion.

Anti-western sentiments in Serbia stem from a 1999 NATO bombing campaign that forced Belgrade to give up control of the Kosovo province. 

Germany to give Ukraine more than 1bn euros in military aid

The German government announced on Friday it wanted to release more than a billion euros in military assistance for Ukraine. 

Berlin has not specified what the money will be used for, with Kyiv complaining it has not received heavy weaponry from the country. 

The billion euro cheque will be used by the Ukrainian government to finance the purchase of military equipment, and comes onto top of a seperate billion euro aid deal between the two countries. 

Berlin is trying to respond to growing criticism from Ukrainian authorities, alongside other EU partners, such as Poland and the Baltic states, that it is not providing enough support to Kyiv, with some accusing it of showing compliancy towards Russia. 

The German government is reluctant to authorise the delivery of heavy weaponry, such as tanks or helicopters, for fear of entering into a dangerous military spiral with Russia.

The move comes after the German President, Franck Walter-Steinmeier, suffered a diplomatic snub Wednesday, when a proposed visit to Kyiv was refused by Ukraine.

Ukrainian authorities said the head of state, although in a largely ceremonial role, had pursued a pro-Russian policy for years. This was hotly denied by Berlin. 

(AFP)

Ukraine claims crew of Moskva 'could not be saved' 

A Ukrainian military official has alleged that Russia could not save the 500 men who were stationed on the Russian warship, after it was struck by a suspected Ukrainian missile. 

Russia maintains it successfully evacuated the crew before the ship sank, due to a fire that severely damaged it. 

Ukraine's claim cannot be independently verfied, and niether senior Pentagon officials nor Russia have given any details on possible casualties onboard the Moskva. 

"A storm prevented the rescue of the ship and the evacuation of the crew,” said Natalia Goumenyuk, spokeswoman for the military command of southern Ukraine. 

Will the sinking of the Moskva impact the Ukraine war?

Kyiv expects the worst after Moskva sinking 

Russia promised on Friday to step up its strikes against Kyiv in response to what it calls Ukrainian "terrorist" attacks. 

It has already targetted sites manufacturing Neptune missiles, which Ukraine claims sunk Russia's flagship of the Black Sea Fleet, the Moskva. 

"We are perfectly aware that we will not be forgiven for the destruction of the Moskva and therefore this blow to Moscow's "imperial ambitions," said Natalia Goumeniouk, spokeswoman for the military command of southern Ukraine.]

“We are aware that the attacks against us will intensify, that the enemy will take revenge, that there will be missile attacks and artillery bombardments,” she continued, reporting strikes in the south, in particular the city of Mykolaiv, near Odessa.

Russia, which is still yet to confirm that a Ukrainian missile sunk the Moskva, set the tone on Friday morning, vowing to set up its attacks on Ukraine. 

"The number and scale of missile strikes on Kyiv sites will increase in response to all terrorist-type attacks and sabotage carried out on Russian territory by the nationalist regime in Kyiv," the Russian Defense Ministry warned.

Ukrainian 'middle finger' stamp already a collector's item

A stamp depicting an Ukrainian soldier giving the middle finger to the Moskva, a Russian warship that sunk Thursday, has become an instant collector's item, after a run on post offices across Ukraine saw 1 million copies sold.

At the central post office in Kyiv, hundreds of Ukrainians queued for several hours to get their hands on the postage stamp, which had sold out late Friday afternoon. 

"This boat was their biggest, it was worth around 750 million dollars, they bet everything on it and we destroyed it for them," said 22-year-old Loury Kolessan, who waited two and a half hours to buy 30 stamps. 

"It's a new stage of the war, that of victory," he said. 

The stamp was designed by a Lviv cartoonist Boris Groh in a competition organised by La Poste, which saw more than 500 submissions. 

Russia has previously said the Moskva sunk off the coast south of Odesa on Thursday after a fire on board. But a US official said Friday they believed the vessel was hit by a Ukrainian anti-ship missile. 

Shelling in Kharkiv claims multiple lives

The governor of the Kharkiv region says seven people, including a seven-month-old child, have been killed in shelling of a residential area in the city. 

34 others were wounded, Oleh Sinehubov said Friday in a Telegram post. 

Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, has been shelled heavily and suffered numerous rocket attacks since the outbreak of war. 

The city's location 40 kilometres (25 miles) from Russia and proximity to separatist regions in the east of Ukraine means it is a strategic target. 

Russia-backed separatists in Mariupol 

Military units of the breakaway Donetsk People's Republic in Ukraine have taken over parts of Mariupol, following an assault by Russian marines. 

"I came here as a volunteer because I understand the situation," said Andrey, one of the fighters, to the Associated Press. "If not people like us, then who?"

The separatist said school children back in Russia had been sending him drawings. 

"It's nice, you know. Lifts the spirits. If, god willing, I stay alive, I'll save these for memories," said Andrey.

(AP)

Google and Wikipedia face fines over 'fake' content from Russian court

A Russian court has threatened US internet giant Google and Wikipedia with fines for failing to delete what it described as "fake" information about the Ukraine conflict. 

Russia's communications watchdog said on Thursday that Google would face fines over its failure to delete videos it deems illegal from its sharing site, Youtube. 

(Reuters)

Sunken Russian cruiser was hit by missile, says US

A senior US defence official has said they believe the Russian cruiser that sank Thursday was hit by a Ukrainian anti-ship missile. 

Pentagon had previously said they could not confirm what had happened to the ship, with Russia saying there was no attack, but a fire. 

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it was a US intelligence assessment that the Moskva was hit Wednesday by at least one, and probably two, Neptune missiles, creating the large fire aboard the vessel.

The official offered no further details beyond saying the US believes the Russians suffered some number of casualties aboard the ship.

Read more: Russia admits Moskva, flagship of its Black Sea fleet, has sunk

(AP)

Police: More than 900 civilian bodies found in Kyiv region

More than 900 civilian bodies have been discovered in the region surrounding the Ukrainian capital following the withdrawal of Russian forces — most of them fatally shot, police said Friday, an indication that many people were "simply executed.”

The number of dead is double that announced by Ukrainian authorities almost two weeks ago.

Andriy Nebytov, the head of Kyiv’s regional police force, said the bodies were abandoned in the streets or given temporary burials. He cited police data indicating that 95% died from gunshot wounds.

“Consequently, we understand that under the (Russian) occupation, people were simply executed in the streets,” Nebytov said.

More bodies are being found every day, under rubble and in mass graves, he added.

The largest number of victims were found in Bucha, where there were more than 350, he said.

(AP)

'I focused on survival': Mariupol escapee tells her story of one month in besieged city

While the cruelty toward Ukrainian civilians projected through photographs and news segments bewilders the world, the ongoing siege of Mariupol continues to be the most shocking in its levels of destruction and absolute disregard for human life.

The remaining residents of the once-thriving southern port city of 432,000, encircled and constantly shelled by the Russian forces, have been facing starvation, thirst and cold for almost eight weeks.

Alina Beskrovna, a 31-year-old finance expert and Mariupol native, survived the first month of the siege in the city, managing to unexpectedly save herself, her mother, and their three cats in late March.

The time she spent there was all about survival, she told Euronews.

“I focused on just survival. We didn’t know if it would be possible to ever leave. I did not believe escape would be possible,” Beskrovna said.

“So my biggest fear, my absolute fear was twofold: one was being raped by Russians. The other was being taken to Russia by force or being forced to live in the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic without the possibility of ever moving,” she recalled.

Read the full story here.
 

EU 'deplores' expulsion of 18 diplomats from Russia

The European Union "deplores the unjustified, baseless decision" of Russia to expel 18 EU diplomats, the bloc said in a statement.

"There are no grounds for Friday’s decision by the Russian authorities beyond being a pure retaliatory step," a spokesperson said.

The EU's high representative for foreign affairs, Josep Borrell, tweeted that he "strongly condemned the unjustified decision by Russian authorities."

"This decision only deepens Russia's international isolation further," he added.

Russia kicks out EU diplomats en mass

Moscow has expelled 18 diplomatic representatives from the European Union in Russia.

The move is a response to a similar measure taken by Brussels over the war in Ukraine. 

"In retaliation for the unfriendly actions of the European Union, 18 members of the EU Representation in Russia are declared personae non gratae," said the Russian diplomatic service in a press release.

They "must leave Russian territory as soon as possible," it added.

Leading newspaper blocked in Russia

One of Russia's top independent newspapers has had its website blocked over critical coverage of the war in Ukraine. 

The Moscow Times, which also publishes in English, said Friday its Russian-language site was unavailable for some users. 

According to the paper, the authorities acted after a story about 11 riot police officers who refused to fight in Ukraine was published. 

On Thursday, a journalist who first broke the story was jailed on the charges of spreading false information about the Russian military.

Finland 'very likely' to apply to join NATO, says minister

An application to join NATO by Finland is "very likely," the country's European affairs minister has said. 

"It is very likely but the decision has not yet been taken," said Tytti Tuppurainen said on Friday. On Wednesday, during a trip to Sweden, which is also debating NATO membership, the head of the Finnish government Sanna Marin indicated that a choice would be taken "within a few weeks"

Russia has previously warned that there would be dire consequences if Finland, which shares a 1,300 km (800 mile) border with Russia, was to join the US-led military alliance, including a nuclear deployment and military build up in the area. 

Read more: Russia warns of nuclear deployment if Sweden and Finland join NATO

Explosion in eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk

A large explosion has struck the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk, the site of a missile strike on a train station a week earlier that left more than 50 dead and dozens wounded.

Associated Press journalists in the city heard the sound of a rocket or missile and then the blast, followed by sirens wailing early Friday afternoon. It was not immediately clear what was hit or whether there were casualties.

Factory manufacturing Neptune missiles hit by a Russian strike

A factory in the Kyiv region that manufactures Neptune missiles was hit overnight by a Russian strike.

An AFP journalist at the scene saw that the factory was seriously damaged.

The spokesperson for Russia's defence ministry had announced earlier that Russia had destroyed a missile production workshop at the factory.

Ukraine had said it used a Neptune missile to destroy a Russian warship.

(AFP)

Mariupol officials: Russians forbid burials

Mariupol City Council said Friday that local residents report Russian troops are digging up bodies previously buried in residential courtyards and not allowing any new burials “of people killed by them.”

“A watchman has been assigned to each courtyard and is not allowing Mariupol residents to lay to rest dead relatives or friends. Why the exhumation is being carried out and where the bodies will be taken is unknown,” according to a statement on the messaging app Telegram.

The claim could not be independently verified.

(AP)

Seven civilians killed by Russian fire on evacuation buses near Kharkiv, Ukrainian General Prosecutor's Office says

At least seven people died and another 27 were injured on evacuation buses near Kharkiv, Ukraine's prosecutor's office said.

"Russian servicemen fired on evacuation buses with civilians in the village of Borova, Izium district," the office claimed.

The prosecutor's office said they were opening an investigation into the attack.

Euronews is unable to independently verify this claim. 

Finland and Sweden joining NATO would have 'consequences', Russia says

Russia's foreign ministry warned on Friday that NATO membership for Sweden and Finland would have consequences for these countries and for European security.

These countries "must understand the consequences of such a step for our bilateral relations and for the European security architecture as a whole," ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement.

"Being a member of NATO cannot strengthen their national security."

Her statement came after former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev threatened that Russia would increase its military forces if the two countries joined the military alliance.

Both Helsinki and Stockholm are considering joining the alliance due to the war in Ukraine.

UN food programme chief says people are being 'starved to death' in Mariupol

The head of the UN World Food Programme said people in the besieged Ukrainian port city of Mariupol are being "starved to death" and said the country's humanitarian crisis will worsen, in an interview with The Associated Press.

David Beasley said the World Food Programme was trying to get food supplies to areas with a lot of fighting but there are "a lot of complexities" including a lack of access and shortage of manpower and fuel.

“It’s not just going to be the next few days — but the next few weeks and few months could even get more complicated than it is now,” he said. “In fact, it’s getting worse and worse, concentrated in certain areas, and the front lines are going to be moving.”

“We will not give up on the people of Mariupol and other people that we cannot reach. But it’s a devastating situation: the people being starved to death,” he said.

(Euronews with AP)

198 children confirmed dead in war in Ukraine, ombudsman says

At least 198 children have been killed in the war in Ukraine, Ukraine's ombudsman Lyudmyla Denisova said in a statement on Facebook.

She added that at least 355 children have been injured since the beginning of the war.

"It is not possible to establish the actual number of dead and wounded children" due to active fighting, Denisova said.

There have been a total of 1,964 confirmed civilian deaths and 2,613 injuries since the beginning of the war, according to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, which also added that the "actual figures are considerably higher" due to the difficulty of getting information from areas where there have been intense hostilities.

Ukrainian officials have said that tens of thousands could be dead in the besieged port city of Mariupol which has been subject to constant shelling.
 

UK MOD: Moskva sinking will make Russia change its Black Sea strategy

Britain’s defence ministry says the loss of Russia’s naval flagship will likely force Moscow to change the way its naval forces operate in the Black Sea.

The Moskva sank after being damaged in disputed circumstances. Ukraine says it struck the vessel with missiles, while Moscow acknowledged a fire on board while the ship was being towed but not any attack.

In an update posted on Friday on social media, the UK Ministry of Defense said the Soviet-era ship, which returned to operational service last year after a major refit, “served a key role as both a command vessel and air defence node”.

It said the sinking “means Russia has now suffered damage to two key naval assets since invading Ukraine, the first being Russia’s Alligator-class landing ship Saratov on 24 March. Both events will likely lead Russia to review its maritime posture in the Black Sea.”

Moscow claims to have killed about 30 'Polish mercenaries' near Kharkiv

Russia said it had killed about 30 "Polish mercenaries" in a strike in northeastern Ukraine on Friday amid increasing tensions between Moscow and Warsaw.

"As a result of the strike, a detachment of mercenaries from a Polish private military company [...] was liquidated in the village of Izium, in the Kharkiv region. Up to 30 Polish mercenaries were eliminated," Russian Defence Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said in a statement.

The claim could not be independently confirmed.

Russian troops have continued to shell several residential areas in and near Kharkiv, head of regional military administration Oleh Synehubov stated on Thursday, with the heaviest shelling reported in Izium.

"Active hostilities are taking place," Synehubov said in a televised address.

Kremlin vows more missile strikes against Kyiv

Russia announced on Friday that it had destroyed an arms factory on the outskirts of Kyiv and assured that the strikes on the Ukrainian capital would be intensified to respond to the attacks carried out by Ukraine on Russian territory.

"The number and scale of missile strikes on sites in Kyiv will increase in response to all terrorist-type attacks and sabotage carried out on Russian territory by the nationalist regime in Kyiv," the Russian Defense Ministry said, announcing the destruction of a surface-to-air missile production workshop in the Vizar factory in Sviatopetrivske.

France decides to bring back its embassy to Ukrainian capital

France is moving its embassy in Ukraine back to Kyiv from the western city of Lviv, after Russian troops pulled away from regions around the capital and have concentrated on embattled eastern Ukraine.

The French Foreign Ministry announced the move on Thursday after Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian spoke with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba about the French military and humanitarian support for Ukraine. A date for the move was not announced.

France had maintained its embassy in Kyiv at the outset of the war but moved its operations to Lviv in March. France sent a new convoy of fire trucks, ambulances and emergency equipment to Ukraine on Thursday and a team of French investigators arrived this week to gather evidence of war crimes.

Ukrainian lawmakers back resolution declaring Russian invasion 'genocide'

Ukraine's parliament passed a resolution on Thursday recognising the actions of the Russian military in the country as "genocide".

"The actions committed by the armed forces of Russia are not just a crime of aggression, but […] the systematic and consistent destruction of the Ukrainian people, their identity and the deprivation of their right to self-determination and independent development," the text approved by a majority of 363 out of the 450 Verkhovna Rada lawmakers said.

"This requires immediate recognition of the actions committed by the armed forces of Russia during the last phase of the aggression against Ukraine, which began on 24 February 2022, as a genocide of the Ukrainian people," an online statement said.

The resolution from the Ukrainian parliament also called for appeals to be sent to foreign governments, parliaments and the UN to recognise Russia's war as genocide.

Zelenskyy praises Ukrainians for resolve in fighting back Russian invasion

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told Ukrainians on Thursday they should be proud of having survived 50 days under Russian attack when the Russians “gave us a maximum of five”.

In his late-night video address, Zelenskyy called it “an achievement of millions of Ukrainians, of everyone who on 24 February made the most important decision of their life – to fight.”

Zelenskyy gave an extensive and almost poetic listing of the many ways in which Ukrainians have helped to fend off the Russian troops, including “those who showed that Russian warships can sail away, even if it’s to the bottom” of the sea.

It was his only reference to the Russian missile cruiser Moskva, which sank after being hit by Neptune missiles, according to Kyiv's claims.

Zelenskyy said he remembered the first day of the invasion when many world leaders, unsure whether Ukraine could survive, advised him to leave the country.

“But they didn’t know how brave Ukrainians are, how much we value freedom and the possibility to live the way we want,” Zelenskyy said.

Siberian journalists arrested, indicted for 'deliberately false information' 

Russian news reports say a criminal case has been opened against a Siberian journalist whose news website had published content critical of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine.

Mikhail Afanasyev, the chief editor of Novy Fokus in the Russian region of Khakassia, was arrested by security forces Wednesday over the website’s reporting on 11 riot police who had allegedly refused deployment to Ukraine as part of Russia’s military action there.

Afanasyev was accused Thursday of disseminating “deliberately false information” about the Russian armed forces, an offence carrying a maximum 10-year jail sentence, according to a law passed in early March.

Another Siberia-based journalist was also arrested Wednesday on suspicion of breaching Russia’s new laws on the media coverage of the situation in Ukraine.

Sergei Mikhailov, the founder of the LIStok weekly newspaper based in the Republic of Altay, was reportedly placed in pre-trial detention over the outlet’s alleged “calls for sanctions against Russia”.

Kremlin accuses Kyiv of attacking Russian territory again

Russian authorities have accused Ukrainian forces of launching airstrikes on the Russian region of Bryansk which borders Ukraine, the latest in a series of allegations of cross-border attacks by Kyiv on Russian territory.

Russia’s Investigative Committee alleged that two Ukrainian military helicopters entered Russia’s air space on Thursday and, “moving at low altitude, acting deliberately, they carried out at least six air strikes on residential buildings in the village of Klimovo,” about 11 kilometres away from the Russian border.

Earlier on Thursday, Russia’s state security service, or the FSB, also accused Ukrainian forces of firing mortars at a border post in the Bryansk region on Wednesday.

The reports could not be independently verified.