It is day 547 of the war in Ukraine.
Russian shelling of Dnipro injured seven people and damaged infrastructure.
The Russian Defence Ministry reported downing three drones in the Bryansk and Kaluga regions.
Law enforcement in St. Petersburg kidnapped a Chechen woman who fled from the Caucasian republic fearing an honour killing.
The US Department of Justice charged Roman Semyonov, a Russian national, with money laundering through the Tornado Cash Service.
Read the top overnight headlines in Novaya-Europe’s roundup.
Seven injured in Russian shelling of Dnipro
Russia launched missiles against Ukraine’s Dnipro overnight, head of the regional administration, Serhiy Lysak, reported Thursday morning.
16:27 UTC+3: Serhiy Lysak reported that three more people injured in the shelling have been taken to the hospital, bringing the total number of those who sustain injuries in Dnipro today to ten.
Photo: damage after the shelling of Dnipro/Serhiy Lysak
Three men and four women sustained injuries. Six people had to be taken to hospital.
The attack damaged a transport facility, two residential buildings, a petrol station, a bank, and several other buildings. Several vehicles as well as gas and water pipes were also damaged.
Photo: damage after the shelling of Dnipro/Serhiy Lysak
Russian Defence Ministry reports downing three drones
Air defence shot down one drone in the airspace of Russia’s Kaluga region and two more in Bryansk region, the Defence Ministry reported on Thursday, blaming Kyiv for the attack.
Russian law enforcement kidnaps woman who fled Chechnya fearing honour killing
Law enforcement officers in St. Petersburg have kidnapped 26-year-old Chechen woman Seda Suleimanova with the intention of sending her back to Chechnya, crisis group SK SOS reported Thursday.
Photo: Seda Suleimanova/Crisis group SK SOS
Police took Seda and her partner to the precinct. The man was soon released, while Seda was taken to Pulkovo airport with the intention of being put on a flight to Grozny.
“Law enforcement claims that Seda is suspected of stealing jewellery … Seda has not been put on a wanted list. She denies the accusation of theft, and the jewellery was not found in her possession. Despite that, she will likely be put on the first flight to Chechnya,” SK SOS wrote.
Seda had earlier fled Chechnya and gone to human rights activists for help, fearing her family could kill her for not being religious enough. Her family had already attempted to kidnap her in February, but she managed to escape and change her place of residence in St. Petersburg.
US charges Russian national with money laundering through crypto service
The US Department of Justice has charged US citizen Roman Storm and Russian national Roman Semenov of laundering $1 billion through the Tornado Cash cryptocurrency mixer which the two co-founded.
The men were also charged with conspiracy to commit sanctions violations and conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business.
“As alleged in the indictment, the defendants operated a $1 billion scheme designed to help other criminals launder and conceal funds using cryptocurrency, including by laundering hundreds of millions of dollars on behalf of a state-sponsored North Korean cybercrime group sanctioned by the U.S. government,” Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said as quoted in the DOJ’s statement.
The cybercrime organisation in question is the North Korean Lazarus Group.
