June 16, 2023 - Russia-Ukraine news

A team of international legal experts assisting Ukraine’s Office of the Prosecutor General said it is “highly likely” the collapse of the Nova Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine’s Kherson region was caused by Russia, according to the preliminary findings of their investigation released on Friday.

The experts with human rights law firm Global Rights Compliance said there is a “high probability” the collapse of the dam on June 6 “was caused by pre-emplaced explosives positioned at critical points within the dam’s structure.”  

The experts visited affected areas in the Kherson region on Saturday and Sunday along with Ukrainian prosecutors and representatives from the International Criminal Court. 

The experts dismissed the theory that the dam’s collapse could have been caused by mismanagement of the facility, saying it is “highly unlikely that mismanagement alone would explain such catastrophic destruction,” the news release said. 

The team noted that those conducting the attack or overseeing the management of the dam would require access or control of the site, which is occupied by Russia. 

British barrister Catriona Murdoch, who headed the mobile justice team, said in a statement: “Information available to Global Rights Compliance and verified with a leading Open-Source Intelligence provider, indicates that at this stage, it is highly likely Russian forces deliberately destroyed the dam." 

Under international humanitarian law, dams are presumed to be civilian in nature. “Civilians living near the Kakhovka Dam were not warned of an impending attack and were even shelled as they attempted to evacuate flooded areas,” Murdoch said.

Yousuf Syed Khan, Global Rights Compliance’s senior lawyer supporting the investigation, said, “What we documented in Kherson is a horrific starvation crime. The reverberating effects of this attack are no doubt immense, far-reaching, and multigenerational, as entire industries and livelihoods related to agribusiness have been severely affected.

The collapse of the dam is one of the biggest industrial and ecological disasters in Europe in decades. The catastrophe has destroyed entire villages, flooded farmland, deprived tens of thousands of people of power and clean water, and caused massive environmental damage.

Russia has denied any involvement in the disaster and in turn accused Ukraine of destroying the dam, without providing evidence.

A delegation of African leaders are in Kyiv to discuss a “peace initiative in Ukraine.” But their first morning in Ukraine was met with sounds that have become grimly familiar to locals since the start of Russia’s invasion, as Moscow launched another round of missile strikes on Ukraine’s capital.

Here are the latest developments:

Germany will "immediately" deliver another 64 Patriot surface-to-air missiles to Kyiv, joining several other NATO allies in bolstering Ukraine's air defenses in its war with Russia. 

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced the missile deliveries on Friday at the second day of a NATO meeting in Brussels.

Last month, Germany announced an aid package worth nearly $3 billion to strengthen the country’s defense, marking Berlin’s largest pledge in military aid since the start of the war. 

Pistorius said the decision is ''a very important sign to support the successful efforts of the Ukrainian armed forces to ensure air defense, especially now in this special phase of the war."

The announcement comes as Kyiv said it repelled a "massive, combined air attack" by Russia.

African heads of state and government have received a briefing from representatives of Ukraine's Ministry of Defense in Kyiv, according to the South African presidency. 

The leaders taking part in the "peace mission" for Ukraine were briefed at Saint Michael's Square in central Kyiv, the presidency said on Twitter.

It follows what the city's officials called a "massive, combined air attack" on the capital. Ukrainian officials said preliminary information shows six Kinzhal aerial ballistic missiles and six Kalibr cruise missiles were destroyed by air defense systems, along with drones. 

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky later on Friday.

The African delegation is then set to travel to Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg on Saturday to discuss their peace bid for Ukraine, as well as the Black Sea grain deal.

In a video, South Africa’s presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya noted the impact of the conflict on issues related to food security in Africa. He claimed that the mission "is the first time that Africa is united behind the resolution of a conflict outside of our continent."

For months, Ukraine has been gearing up to attempt to drive invading Russian forces from territories they have occupied. On Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky gave his strongest indication yet that Kyiv’s counteroffensive is underway.

CNN spoke to locals in Kyiv to learn more about the mood on the ground as Ukraine’s offensive gathers pace.

Artem Sakhon, an IT specialist, told CNN:

Viktor Potapenko, a lawyer and pensioner, told CNN that he "trusts" the Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's forces, but also said he expects success to come gradually:

Kateryna Muller, a kindergarten teacher, told CNN that her friends in Berlin, Germany, also have high hopes for Ukraine's counteroffensive:

Andriy Yermak, head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, said Friday that “another terrorist attack on the capital was repelled.”

He also said that the timing of the missile strike -- launched while a delegation of African heads of state were in the Kyiv region -- showed Russian President Vladimir Putin is continuing to act with “impunity.”

“Russia's missile attack took place just as African leaders arrived in the capital,” Yermak said.

“We remember that missiles were also flying when US President Joe Biden and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres arrived in Ukraine,” Yermak added, in a Telegram post.

He called on the world to take “the toughest possible position against Russia,” and to show strength to “a state that undermines global security and acts with terrorist methods.”

“Only strong diplomacy and a strong position can put an end to Russian terrorism. Because this concerns everyone, every state that wants to exist and preserve the world order.”

African peace mission: Yermak's comments come ahead of an expected meeting between South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Zelensky in Kyiv on Friday. A delegation of African leaders is currently visiting Kyiv. They are next set to meet Russia’s President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg on Saturday to discuss a "peace initiative in Ukraine" and the Black Sea grain deal.

South Africa’s presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said in a video message on Friday: “This peace mission is the first time that Africa is united behind the resolution of a conflict outside of our continent, and where you have a group of African heads of state and government traveling together in an attempt to find a path to peace to this conflict.” 

No casualties have been reported in the city of Kyiv so far following a “massive, combined air attack” on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, on Friday, the city’s military administration said.

However, Kyiv region’s police chief, Andrii Nebytov, said private houses in one district were damaged as a result of the missile attack. 

A fire broke out and “there are injured” people, according to Nebytov, without specifying how many.

It warned “there is a high probability of repeated missile attacks in the near future.”

12 missiles and two drones were shot down in the latest Russian attack on Kyiv, Ukraine’s Air Force said.

In a Telegram post, the Air Force said preliminary information shows six Kinzhal aerial ballistic missiles and six Kalibr cruise missiles were destroyed. 

The air raid alert has now ended for Kyiv city, the wider Kyiv region, the western regions and some central regions of Ukraine.

What are Kinzhal missiles?: Kinzhal, or Kh-47, are air-launched ballistic missiles with a range of some 2,000 kilometres (1,250 miles).

It travels at about 10 times the speed of sound and carries a warhead of nearly 500 kilograms.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his armed forces have touted the Kinzhal as an example of Russia’s modernized missile arsenal, claiming that its hypersonic speed makes it extremely difficult to intercept.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and other African heads of state participating in the African peace mission are in the town of Bucha, in Kyiv region, according to the South African presidency.

Their visit to Bucha comes as Russia has launched the latest missile strike on Kyiv.

A tweet posted Friday morning – before the explosions were heard in Kyiv -- said the group is visiting St Andrew’s Orthodox Church in Bucha.

The African delegation is set to receive a briefing ahead of their visit to a mass grave for hundreds of civilians killed in the initial stages of the conflict.

Bucha massacre: The name "Bucha" -- a suburb of Kyiv -- has become a byword for war crimes, after accounts of summary executions, brutality and indiscriminate shelling emerged in the wake of Russia's hasty retreat from the Ukrainian capital, which it failed to capture in the early days of the war.

Moscow claimed, without evidence, that the atrocities in Bucha were staged -- calling it "fake," and part of a "planned media campaign."

But witnesses who spoke to CNN told a different story -- of bodies tied up, shot and left to rot.

Read the full report at the time.