Is the war entering a new phase? Romania has summoned Russia's ambassador as it has reported that it shot down three drones in as many days. A Romanian plane shot down a drone after an incursion into the country's airspace on Sunday morning, the Ministry of Defence reported. The incident followed similar interceptions on Friday and Saturday. Romania is one of several alliance members to confront repeated stray drones recently, as Russia and Ukraine launch hundreds of the unmanned aircraft daily.

In "Biological War," Annie Jacobsen imagines society collapsing from a man-made plague--part of a wave of such prophecies. But what do we miss when we try to predict the future? In the fall of 1989, a select group of Soviet scientists was summoned to Obolensk, a secluded municipality on Moscow's periphery, and gathered at what appeared to be an insane asylum to discuss a pioneering technique for mass murder. If someone had been observing the institutional activity from space--a distinctly non-theoretical possibility--they might have seen a shuffle of patients roaming the grounds or playing volleyball in their pajamas. These were actors, hired to play the disturbed as a cover story for something even more disturbing. The eight-story glass building at the center of the complex, which had putatively been devoted to vaccine manufacturing, was in fact a highly classified defense facility. Its remit was called, or "biological preparations"--what one participant later described as "the most ambitious Soviet arms program since the development of the hydrogen bomb." The most recent experiments there had at last demonstrated the viability of a weapon that could wipe out entire enemy populations without leaving a scratch on their infrastructure. It was a pathogen genetically engineered to spread within hours, to kill within days, and to resist all existing treatment.

A Romanian F-16 fighter jet shot down a drone that entered the country's airspace without authorization, marking the first such interception by the NATO member on its eastern flank.

Is the war entering a new phase? Civilian casualties in the war between Russia and Ukraine are increasing sharply, mainly because of long-range ballistic missiles and drones "affecting densely populated urban areas that are far away from the front line", the United Nations says. Danielle Bell, head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, told reporters in Geneva on Tuesday that the unit documented 1,396 civilians killed and 7,978 wounded in Ukraine in the first six months of 2026. Pointing to credible Russian open-source reporting, Bell said 250 civilians had been killed and 1,596 injured in attacks inside Russia during the first six months of this year. "This represents a 121 percent increase in civilian casualties in the Russian Federation compared with last year," she said.

Russians are returning to cash, as mobile internet shutdowns disrupt card payments, and more businesses seek to dodge tax under mounting financial pressure more than four years into the war with Ukraine. Russia has added 1.56tn roubles (£14.8bn; The spike comes amid a wave of Ukrainian drone attacks, which have repeatedly led the Kremlin to shut down mobile internet across large swathes of the country, leaving many unable to pay by card. The government says the aim of the shutdowns is to counter the drone strikes. Having cash on hand gives you some sense of control and security, one woman in Moscow told the BBC on condition of anonymity.

Is the war entering a new phase? Ukrainian drone attacks in western Russia have killed at least eight people and wounded dozens, according to local officials, as Ukraine and Russia continue to exchange strikes. Tambov Governor Evgeniy Pervyshov said on Saturday that an attack on Kotovsk struck a warehouse owned by Wildberries, Russia's largest online retailer. Another 25 people were wounded, including one person in critical condition and six seriously, with most of the injuries caused by shrapnel, he said. According to the governor, 28 drones had been intercepted.

President Donald Trump says Vladimir Putin is "ready to make a deal" to end the Ukraine war, even as Russia warns Western troops enforcing any ceasefire would become military targets.

Long-range drone and missile strikes on Russian soil have shifted the balance of the conflict--will they be enough to end it? In recent weeks, Donald Trump--whose attitude toward Ukraine and its President, Volodymyr Zelensky, has been notoriously fickle, when not outright hostile --has appeared to warm to Ukraine's chances in the war with Russia. On the sidelines of the summit in Ankara, he met with Zelensky and later spoke of him in flattering terms, declaring "We've actually developed a good relationship. Trump has a history of favoring those he perceives as winners, and his change in attitude regarding Ukraine seems driven by the country's newfound ability to strike targets deep inside Russia--"an escalation that can help lead to an end," Trump said. In Ankara, Zelensky, the inveterate entertainer, riffed on a question from Trump, who asked if Zelensky would consider travelling to Moscow for direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. That would be dangerous, Zelensky ...

Is the war entering a new phase? Several people have been killed in Russian attacks on port infrastructure in Odesa and Mykolaiv, and Ukraine said it launched drone strikes on 20 Russian vessels as the warring sides escalated their battle over the Black Sea and key trade routes. Odesa region Governor Oleh Kiper said on Wednesday that a "massive" Russian drone and missile attack on the southern region continued for a fifth day, with civilian, industrial and port infrastructure coming under attack. Russia's Ministry of Defence confirmed the strikes on the Odesa and Chernomorsk ports, saying Russian forces targeted infrastructure facilities that it claims are used to store fuel and assemble drones. Russia in recent days has stepped up attacks on Ukraine's Black Sea ports in the Greater Odesa area, which handle much of the country's grain and other cargo and are vital to its wartime economy.

Is the war entering a new phase? Surveillance video shows an explosion in a residential area near Russia's capital following overnight Ukrainian drone attacks. Ukrainian strikes have also caused a large fire in southern Russia. Israel releases video of hidden tunnels below Lebanon's Beaufort Castle