Ukraine: British man held by Russia-backed separatists dies in detention

A British man captured by pro-Russian forces in Ukraine has died in detention, Moscow-backed separatists said on Friday.

"He died on July 10," Darya Morozova, a representative of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, said, adding that he had diabetes.

Non-governmental organizations described Paul Urey as a humanitarian aid volunteer, while Russia-backed separatists insisted he was a "professional" soldier.

Russian parliament recalled for extraordinary session, sparking fears in Kyiv

The lower house of the Russian parliament — the State Duma — on Friday was recalled for an extraordinary session.

The Russian parliament, dominated by a party that always supports President Vladimir Putin, listed some amendments on competition and information policy that would be discussed.

Vladimir Vasilyev, the head of the pro-Putin United Russia party, which has 325 seats in the 450-seat chamber, said lawmakers would discuss more than 60 issues at the session. He did not, however, specify what items were on the agenda.

From Kyiv, DW's Nick Connolly reported on speculation surrounding the extraordinary session.

"The take on this from Kyiv is that this is going to prepare the way for some kind of annexation of the Ukrainian territory that Russia has occupied since February 24," he said from the Ukrainian capital. "There had been speculation they might hold a referendum as they did in Crimea in 2014 or they might just go straight out and annex all this territory, say 'This is Russian core territory and if you, Ukraine, or Western countries helping Ukraine, do anything to change that we will use nuclear weapons to protect our core territory.' That is the fear here."

Burials in Russian-held areas of Ukraine rise sharply, says NGO

Satellite images along with photographs from the ground reveal a sharp increase in burials in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine, according to a report released Friday.

The Center for Information Resilience (CIR) — a non-governmental organization — focused on six areas, two of which were previously held by Russian forces and four others still under Moscow's control in southern Ukraine.

"Open source information can give unprecedented reach behind the frontlines of the war in Ukraine and into areas occupied by Russian forces," said Benjamin Strick, director of investigations at CIR.

"Our report illustrates the continuing, extreme pressure on civilian life in Ukraine," Strick said.

"Makeshift burials and the growing number of graves around Ukraine, particularly in and around occupied areas, is a stark illustration of the civilian death toll following the Russian invasion," he added.

The United Nations said Tuesday that more than 5,000 civilians had been killed in Ukraine since Russia invaded on February 24, before adding that the actual figure was probably much higher.

US Treasury Secretary Yellen blames Russia for consequences of Ukraine war
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen spoke at the opening session of the G20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank chiefs in Bali and condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"I condemn Russia’s brutal and unjust war in the strongest possible terms," Yellen said. "By starting this war, Russia is solely responsible for negative spillovers to the global economy, particularly higher commodity prices."

Yellen said that Russian officials present at the meeting "share responsibility for the innocent lives lost and the ongoing human and economic toll that the war is causing around the world."

In opening remarks, Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati warned against the "triple threat" of surging commodity prices, global inflation and war. She urged officials to work together in the spirit of "cooperation, collaboration and consensus" to find solutions to these crises.

"The cost of our failure is more than we can afford," she said. "The humanitarian consequences for the world and for many low-income countries would be catastrophic."

Ukraine's Zelenskyy labels Russia 'terrorist state'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his nightly address reiterated Kyiv's demand that Russia be recognized as a "terrorist state," after a missile strike on the city of Vinnytsia killed 23.

"This day once again proved that Russia must be officially recognized as a terrorist state," Zelenskyy said.

"No other state in the world allows itself to destroy peaceful cities and ordinary human life with cruise missiles and rocket artillery every day," he added.

Ukraine's president underscored that the death toll from the strike on Vinnytsia could increase. "Debris clearance is ongoing. Dozens of people are listed as missing. Heavily wounded are among those hospitalized," he said.

Ukraine's president called for the establishment of a "special tribunal" on Russia's actions in Ukraine, alongside a "special compensation mechanism" that would take funds from Moscow and use them to compensate victims of the invasion.