Ukraine updates: Kyiv pulls forces from part of Chasiv Yar

A Russian missile strike on Wednesday in Ukraine's Poltava region killed one person and injured three others according to Ukraine's Energy Ministry.

Ukrainian gas producer Ukrgasvydobuvannya said in a statement on Telegram that gas infrastructure had been damaged and one of its electricians had been killed.

Ukraine's air force said on Wednesday that a Russian missile had been brought down in the same region.

The regional governor reported that there had been damage.

A Moscow court on Thursday ordered French citizen Laurent Vinatier to remain in pre-trial detention.

The French researcher is accused of gathering military information and failing to register as a "foreign agent."

He was arrested in Moscow in June and, if convicted, faces a maximum prison sentence of five years.

Vinatier made his court appearance via video link, wearing a black T-shirt and sitting behind bars, speaking accented Russian and visibly emotional.  

"I will try to speak Russian. I am an analyst, a researcher, a writer... I always wanted to adequately present the interest and position of Russia on international relations in my work," he said. 

"I love Russia, my wife is Russian, my life is linked with Russia," he told the court, adding: "I do not understand why I am here."

The current and more stringent Russian "foreign agent" law came into force in June 2022. Since then, it has been used repeatedly to crack down on dissent and has seen several people arrested.

Two people have been killed and another wounded following a Russian attack in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, according to the local governor.

"A man and a woman died as a result of enemy shelling," Governor Ivan Fedorov said in a post on the Telegram messaging service, adding that another person was wounded during the attack.

Fedorov said Russia had carried out 391 strikes on 10 settlements in the Zaporizhzhia region over a 24-hour period.

Russia claims to have annexed Zaporizhzhia but it does not fully control the region. The region is home to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

Russia accused Ukraine of firing self-detonating drones towards the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant on Wednesday.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) head Rafael Grossi warned that attacks targeting the nuclear facility must stop.

The Zaporizhzhia plant, the largest in Europe, was captured by Russian forces shortly after the invasion was launched in February 2022. It is shut down but needs external power to keep its nuclear material cool and prevent a meltdown.

Ukraine's military said on Thursday that its forces had withdrawn from parts of the eastern frontline city of Chasiv Yar in the Donetsk region.

The announcement comes a day after Russia said its forces had taken control over part of the strategic town.

"It became impractical to hold the Kanal district, which the enemy had entered, because it threatened the lives and well-being of our soldiers," Ukrainian military spokesman Nazar Voloshyn said on state-run television.

"Our defenders' positions had been destroyed. The command decided to retreat to better protected and prepared positions," Voloshyn added.

Russian forces have been slowly advancing in the Donetsk region in recent weeks looking to extend the front near the northeastern city of Kharkiv.

Chasiv Yar lies 20 kilometers (12 miles) west of Bakhmut, which was flattened by months of artillery fire before being seized by Russian forces last May.

Moscow claims the industrial Donetsk region is part of Russia. The region has borne the brunt of fighting after Russian forces launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

kb/sms (Reuters, AFP, AP, dpa)