Police in Poland are investigating the execution-style murder of a Russian artist and vocal critic of President Vladimir Putin. Polish prosecutors said Robert K, known as the artist Semyon Skrepetsky, was shot dead on Monday morning in the Polish city of Biała Podlaska, about 40km (25 miles) from the Belarusian border. The 44-year-old was shot five times in the head, chest and back in a car park in the city, located about 600m from the Belarusian consulate. He was known for his caricatures of politicians, including Putin, Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov. Marcin Kozak, spokesman for the District Prosecutor's Office in Lublin, said the artist was approached by an unidentified gunman who fired two shots at him.

Ukrainian drones have struck a historic museum in Russia-annexed Sevastopol in Crimea, igniting a roof fire, as Russian authorities slashed nighttime train schedules amid intensifying air attacks across the peninsula and deep into Russia. Sevastopol's Russian-installed governor, Mikhail Razvozhayev, announced the damage on Telegram early on Wednesday. "This building is not just a museum, it is a symbol of resilience, which has repeatedly taken the blows of the enemy." Razvozhayev said that during World War II's Siege of Sevastopol, "the Panorama building was subjected to massed bombing by German aviation". He declared: "The enemy will pay for this sacrilege!"

Ukraine has launched coordinated drone attacks on Russian energy infrastructure across multiple regions overnight. The most significant strike hit Taganrog, Rostov Oblast, where a major port fire broke out after drones hit a tanker, fuel tank and administrative building, Russia's RIA Novosti state media agency reported. "A tanker, a fuel tank, and an administrative building caught fire at the port of Taganrog as a result of a drone attack," Slyusar wrote. "According to preliminary information, there are no casualties. The information is being clarified."

Fibre-optic drones have become Hezbollah's primary weapon against Israeli soldiers and civilians, along both sides of the Lebanese border, and are now seen as the biggest threat there, as fighting continues six weeks into a supposed ceasefire. One Israeli soldier was killed and two others injured in a drone attack near the Israeli border community of Shomera on Wednesday. Of the 11 Israeli soldiers and one civilian defence contractor killed since the ceasefire came into force, eight have been killed by fibre-optic drones. Most of the attacks have targeted Israeli forces, which are currently occupying a large area of southern Lebanon, but Hezbollah is also increasingly attacking Israeli communities across the border, according to the Alma Research Center, an Israeli think tank which monitors the conflict. It has recorded more than 100 drone attacks against communities inside Israel since the ceasefire began in April.

What are Russia's gains from the Iran war? 'We are not losers; we are winners' A Russian attack has damaged port infrastructure in Ukraine's Danube River port city of Izmail, a vital grain-export hub, while Russian authorities said they had downed four Ukrainian drones headed towards Moscow, as peace efforts remain stalled and both sides continue reciprocal attacks. Izmail, in the Odesa region, is a frequently targeted logistical centre and was hit in the early hours of Tuesday. It is Ukraine's largest port on the Danube. The attack lasted from about 1am to 3am (22:00 to 00:00 GMT), with firefighters battling a blaze in a building with blown-out windows. This followed another Russian attack on port infrastructure in Izmail on the night of May 2. In Kharkiv, two people were rescued, and one may remain trapped under the rubble after a Russian drone attack, Mayor Ihor Terekhov said on Telegram.

Will Gulf states join war? What is the UAE's Barakah nuclear plant, nearly hit by a drone? A drone attack that caused a fire close to the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant in the United Arab Emirates has raised further concerns about nuclear security and military escalation in the Gulf as discussions of peace between Iran and the United States hang in the balance. Barakah was the first nuclear power station to be built on the Arabian Peninsula. What is the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant? Barakah is a nuclear energy plant located in Al Dhafra, the largest municipal region of the emirate of Abu Dhabi.

Could the war trigger a hunger crisis? How well do you know Iran? Drone strike sparks fire on perimeter of UAE's Barakah nuclear power plant A drone strike has sparked a fire on the perimeter of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), raising new concerns over a potential new regional escalation amid a fragile ceasefire between Iran and the United States. Authorities in Abu Dhabi said the blaze broke out at an electrical generator outside the plant's inner perimeter in the Al Dhafra region on Sunday. No injuries were reported, and officials said radiation levels remained normal.

Three people were killed overnight in a large-scale Ukrainian drone attack on the Moscow region, Russian officials have said. A woman died in a house in Khimki, north of the capital, where a person was trapped under rubble, regional governor Andrei Vorobiev said. A man and a woman were killed in the village of Pogorelki. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said 12 people were injured in strikes on a city oil refinery. Russia's military said 556 drones were intercepted.

One person has been killed and dozens wounded after Russia launched a massive wave of strikes against Ukraine overnight, officials have said. Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said it was an especially difficult night for Kyiv, where rescuers are searching through the rubble of a residential building after a combined missile and drone attack on the Ukrainian capital. The overnight barrage followed a major attack on Wednesday - one of the largest Russia has mounted since the start of its full-scale invasion in 2022, with 892 drones launched in 24 hours. It marks the third day in a row Ukraine has reported deaths, as Moscow ramps up its assault after a three-day ceasefire expired on Monday. In the capital, a search and rescue operation began early Thursday to look for people under the rubble of a nine-storey apartment block which had been hit overnight.

What are Russia's gains from the Iran war? 'We are not losers; we are winners' 'One of the longest' Russian attacks kills at least six people in Ukraine At least six people have been killed and dozens injured in "one of the longest, massive Russian attacks against Ukraine", according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, despite renewed claims from the Russian and United States presidents that the war may be nearing an end. Zelenskyy said the barrage began on Wednesday morning and lasted for hours, striking Kyiv, the western city of Lviv near the Polish border and the Black Sea port of Odesa, among other areas. In the southern region of Kherson, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said a woman was killed when a Russian drone struck a bus in the town of Bilozerka. Another drone attack in the western region of Rivne killed three people and injured four, according to Governor Oleksandr Koval. In the Kharkiv region in northeastern Ukraine, authorities said a 60-year-old man was killed when Russian forces attacked a community near the city of Zolochiv with first-person view drones.