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Russia has launched one of its biggest aerial barrages on Ukraine since the start of the invasion, killing at least 30 people and wounding 144 others.

Several cities were struck overnight as Russia launched more than 100 missiles and dozens of drones, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, with most of them being shot down.

Ukrainian Air Force commander Mykola Oleshchuk suggested the strike was Russia’s largest aerial attack since the war began in February 2022, describing it on Telegram messenger as “the most massive attack from the air”.

Army chief General Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said the attack targeted critical infrastructure and industrial and military facilities.

Read more: Ukraine-Russia war latest

An explosion of a missile is seen in the sky over the city during a Russian missile and drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine December 29, 2023. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich
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Ukraine’s capital Kyiv was among the cities targeted

The Western military alliance says it is “monitoring the situation” in Poland after a suspected Russian missile entered its airspace briefly during the bombings.

The missile is thought to have flown over Polish territory for three minutes before moving back into Ukrainian airspace. Polish President Andrzej Duda has since convened an emergency meeting of the National Security Council.

Poland is a NATO member and would expect to be backed by other countries including the US and UK if it is attacked.

“I spoke with President Andrzej Duda about the missile incident in Poland,” said NATO secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg.

“NATO stands in solidarity with our valued ally, is monitoring the situation and we will remain in contact as the facts are established. NATO remains vigilant.”

Damage was reported at a maternity hospital in the central city of Dnipro and buildings in the western city of Lviv, the southeastern port of Odesa and city of Zaporizhzhia, and the eastern city of Kharkiv.

At least three people were killed in the capital Kyiv, with 10 people trapped under rubble at a warehouse damaged by falling debris, said the city’s mayor Vitali Klitschko.

In Boyarka, a city near Kyiv, the debris of a shot-down drone fell on a home and started a fire.

Andrii Korobka, 47, said his mother was sleeping next to the room where the wreckage landed and was taken to hospital suffering from shock.

“The war goes on, and it can happen to any house, even if you think yours will never be affected,” Mr Korobka said.

An explosion of a missile is seen in the sky over the city during a Russian missile and drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine December 29, 2023. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich

At least three other people were killed in the Black Sea port city of Odesa and at least 15 were injured, including two children, as missiles hit residential buildings, the regional governor for the area said.

At least five people were killed in Dnipro, where missiles hit a shopping centre, a privately-held home and a six-storey residential building, and at least two were also killed in Kharkiv and Lviv.

Three schools and a kindergarten were also damaged in Lviv, the city’s mayor Andrii Sadovyi said.

Ukrainian airstrikes map

Missiles also hit several infrastructure facilities in the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia, where at least one person was killed, the interior minister said.

“Today, millions of Ukrainians awoke to the loud sound of explosions. I wish those sounds of explosions in Ukraine could be heard all around the world,” foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said, calling for Kyiv’s allies to step up their support.

Firefighters stand at the site of a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine December 29, 2023. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
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The aftermath of an attack in Kyiv

Pic: AP
Apartment buildings are seen damaged after a Russian attack in Odesa, Ukraine, Friday, Dec. 29, 2023. (AP Photo/Artem Perfilov)
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Apartment buildings damaged in Odesa. Pic: AP Photo/Artem Perfilov

Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat claimed Russia used hypersonic, cruise and ballistic missiles, including X-22 type, which are extremely hard to intercept.

“Russia attacked with everything it has in its arsenal,” President Zelenskyy said on Telegram.

The president initially reported that around 110 missiles were fired, “most of which were shot down”.

Ukraine later claimed Russia had launched 122 missiles and 36 drones, with the military managing to down 27 drones and 87 cruise missiles.

It comes days after Ukraine downed 32 of 46 Iranian-made drones deployed by Russia in an overnight air strike.

On Wednesday, Ukraine’s military said most of the rest of the drones hit the frontline, mainly in the Kherson region.

A firefighter works at a site of a warehouse heavily damaged during a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine December 29, 2023. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
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A firefighter battling a blaze in Kyiv

According to the Ukrainian air force, the previous biggest assault on the country was in November 2022, when Russia launched 96 missiles against Ukraine. This year, the biggest was 81 missiles on 9 March, air force records show.

Ukraine has been warning for weeks that Russia could be stockpiling missiles to launch a major air campaign targeting the energy system.

Last year, millions of people were plunged into darkness when Russian strikes pounded the power grid.

Smoke rises from a building at the site of a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine December 29, 2023. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
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Hypersonic, cruise and ballistic missiles were reportedly used in the bombings

The energy ministry reported power outages in four regions after the air attack.

In the Lviv region, which borders Poland, impacts were confirmed at a critical infrastructure facility, the president’s office said, declining to say which one.

“The enemy targeted social and critical infrastructure,” Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.

A firefighter works at a site of a warehouse heavily damaged during a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine December 29, 2023. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
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A warehouse went up in flames in Kyiv

A view shows a maternity hospital destroyed during a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Dnipro, Ukraine December 29, 2023. REUTERS/Mykola Synelnykov
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A car outside a maternity hospital in Dnipro was destroyed in the airstrikes

The attack comes days after Ukraine struck a Russian warship in the occupied Crimean port of Feodosia.

It also follows a $250m (£196m) military aid package to Ukraine from the US, which included air defence ammunition.

General Sir Richard Barrons, former commander of Joint Forces Command, told Sky News the massive overnight assault was “relatively unusual”.

He said: “Since the invasion began, Russia has used about 11,000 missiles and drones. So, 110 is quite a large number for one night’s work.

“Russia can probably make about 65 cruise missiles a month now and it imports others from places like Iran, so it was a major effort. But then the sinking of the landing ship was a major disaster for the Russian military.”

Elderly man saved after being buried beneath rubble following Russian aerial barrage
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Emergency crews pulling a man to safety from rubble

General Barrons believes the bombings were a message to Ukraine that “Russia can hit anywhere in the country and it will focus on civilian targets”.

He added: “But also a message to Ukraine to keep their air defence around the cities and not on the frontlines.”

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Sky News’ military analyst Sean Bell said Russia could have launched the attacks to “make life as miserable as possible” for Ukrainians during the harsh winter months.

He added that the airstrikes may also have been in retribution for the landing ship attack.

Mr Bell said: “At the start of 2023 it would have been full of expectation. President Zelenskyy was being offered lots of weapons.

“He’d shown that he could push Russia out of Ukraine, but by the end of the year, frankly, the spring offensive really hasn’t achieved much.

“And at the year’s end, Russia is actually on the front foot at the moment.”

Pic: AP
Rescuers work on a site of an apartment building damaged after a Russian attack in Odesa, Ukraine, Friday, Dec. 29, 2023. (AP Photo/Artem Perfilov)
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Emergency crews in Odesa. Pic: AP Photo/Artem Perfilov

Mr Bell believes Ukraine’s future lies in Western support.

He added: “And bluntly, this last package of aid has just arrived, £200m. Unless the EU and the US unblock the aid that’s spare there, then Russia will become emboldened. President Putin will become much more resilient and robust about his offense.

“But it’s almost certainly not the end to 2023 that President Zelenskyy might have hoped for at the start of the year.”

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CCTV footage reveals shocking moment 80-year-old is shot in IDF raid as UN expert says it could be ‘war crime’

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CCTV footage reveals shocking moment 80-year-old is shot in IDF raid as UN expert says it could be 'war crime'

On 19 December, 80-year-old Palestinian grandmother Halima Abu Leil was shot in an Israel Defence Forces (IDF) raid on her neighbourhood in Balata refugee camp in Nablus, West Bank.

Two days later, Halima’s children told Sky News their mother was shot six times by Israeli special forces on her way to buy groceries. She died soon after.

Warning this piece includes an image from CCTV of the moment Halima Abu Leil was shot.

“They could see she is an elderly lady but they shot her six times – in her leg, in her chest. When she was first shot in her legs, she knelt on the ground,” her daughter said.

Halima Abuleil's daughter
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Halima’s daughter

Newly released grainy CCTV footage shows the moment she was shot and reveals that a van marked as an ambulance was used during the surprise IDF raid.

Halima Abu Leil’s family want the footage to be seen.

Sky News’ Data & Forensics unit has analysed the CCTV and geolocated the street where the video was filmed. It is the exact location Halima’s son told us she “fell to her knees” as she was shot.

READ MORE: Grandmother shot six times by IDF during raid, son says

In the video, we see Halima turn into the street.

Three men are also walking down the street. There is no visible contact between them and Halima. Based on our analysis of their silhouettes, the figure in the middle appears to be holding a weapon. They are likely to be neighbourhood militants.

The figure in the middle appears to be holding a weapon

The three men veer to the right, moving into a sunny area. One takes a seat on some stairs, while the other two stand. They join someone sitting there already.

A few yards away, Halima stops in the middle of the street to speak to another woman with a shopping trolley.

An ambulance pulls into vision, separating the two women, and drives slowly down the street. A white van pulls in behind the medical vehicle.

A few moments later, the passenger door of the white van opens and a faint cloud of smoke is visible, suggesting that a gunshot is fired.

This is the moment Halima falls to her knees.

The men, some of them armed, scatter to the right and left into alleyways along with other people in the street.

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A detailed analysis of the footage suggests that visible clouds of smoke on the walls are the result of multiple shots. The footage and imagery we gathered from the site of the killing shows bullet holes in the building next to where Halima was standing.

The exact location Halima Abu Leil was shot in Balata Refugee Camp.
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The exact location Halima Abu Leil was shot in Balata Refugee Camp

The woman she was speaking to moments earlier takes cover in a doorway.

At the same time, figures who appear to be Israeli military forces exit the ambulance in the foreground. They are equipped with helmets, backpacks, rifles, and other gear.

Soldier seen in video

Armed figures can also be seen leaving the white van in the background. They are seen aiming their weapons down the street.

Halima appears to get hit again and collapses to the floor. The men likely to be neighbourhood militants are not visibly present in the street when this happens.

At the time of our previous report, the IDF said they had conducted “counterterrorism activity” in Balata camp the morning Halima was killed.

We approached the IDF about the CCTV footage and the use of a medical vehicle to conduct their operation.

This was its response: “The IDF is committed to and operates in accordance with international law. The mentioned incident is under review. The review will examine the use of the vehicle shown in the video and the claims of harm to uninvolved individuals during the exchange of fire between the terrorists and our forces.”

The use of a marked medical vehicle for a security operation could be a contravention of the Geneva Convention and a war crime – as well as Halima’s killing.

balata

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on occupied Palestinian territory Francesca Albanese watched the CCTV video and told Sky News she was shocked but not surprised.

She says: “When I look at the footage, what emerges prima facie is that there were no precautions taken – within these operations whose legality is debatable – to avoid or spare civilian life. No principle of proportionality because there was wildfire directed at the identified target and ultimately no respect for the principle of distinction.

“So this was a murder in cold blood and could be a war crime as an extrajudicial killing.”

According to the United Nations Office of Human Rights in occupied Palestinian territory (OHCHR oPt), Israeli security forces and settlers have killed at least 813 mostly unarmed Palestinians, including 15 women and 177 children, since 7 October 2023.

In a statement to Sky News regarding Halima’s killing, the OHCHR oPT said: “Any deliberate killing by Israeli security forces of Palestinians in the Occupied West Bank who do not pose an imminent threat to life is unlawful under international human rights law and a war crime in the context of Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian Territory.

“This incident must be investigated independently, effectively, thoroughly, and transparently. If there is evidence of violations of the applicable law enforcement standards, those responsible must be held to account.”

Sophie Alexander, international affairs producer, and Michelle Inez Simon, visual investigations producer, contributed reporting.


The Data and Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.

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Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy pushes for Gaza ceasefire deal ahead of US inauguration

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Donald Trump's Middle East envoy pushes for Gaza ceasefire deal ahead of US inauguration

Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy has met Israel’s prime minister in an effort to secure a ceasefire deal in Gaza before the president-elect takes office on 20 January.

Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed details of the meeting with Steve Witkoff on Saturday, adding that the head of the Israeli Mossad intelligence agency has been deployed to Qatar in order to “advance” talks.

It was not immediately clear when David Barnea would travel to Doha for the latest round of indirect discussions between Israel and Hamas.

Earlier on Saturday, an Israeli official said some progress had been made, mediated by Egypt, Qatar and the United States, to reach a deal in Gaza.

Israel's Chief of the Mossad David Barnea and Security Agency director Ronen Bar attend a memorial ceremony of the Hamas attack on October 7 last year that sparked the ongoing war in Gaza, at the Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem on October 27, 2024. GIL COHEN-MAGEN/Pool via REUTERS
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Ronen Bar (left), director of Israel’s security agency, and David Barnea (right), head of Mossad, at a ceremony marking the 7 October Hamas attack. File pic: Reuters

The mediators are making renewed efforts to halt fighting in Gaza and free the remaining Israeli hostages held there before Mr Trump takes office.

A deal would also involve the release of some Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

Families of Israeli hostages welcomed Mr Netanyahu’s decision to dispatch the officials, with the Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters describing it as a “historic opportunity”.

Mr Witkoff arrived in Doha on Friday and met the Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Qatar’s foreign ministry said.

Egyptian and Qatari mediators received reassurances from Mr Witkoff that the US would continue to work towards a fair deal to end the war soon, Egyptian security sources said, though no further details were released.

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Israel launched its assault on Gaza after Hamas fighters stormed across its borders in October 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures.

Families of the roughly 100 hostages still held in Gaza are pressing Mr Netanyahu to reach a deal to bring their loved ones home.

Since then, more than 46,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials, with much of the area destroyed and gripped by a humanitarian crisis, with most of its population displaced.

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Pope Francis honoured by Joe Biden with Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction

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Pope Francis honoured by Joe Biden with Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction

Pope Francis has been honoured with America’s highest civilian award by President Joe Biden, who has described the pontiff as “a light of faith, hope, and love that shines brightly across the world”.

It is the first time Mr Biden, 82, has given the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction during his four years in office.

In a statement, the White House said the award is “presented to individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavours”.

Mr Biden had been scheduled to present the medal to Pope Francis, 88, in person on Saturday in Rome on what was to be the final overseas trip of his presidency. But the president cancelled his visit to monitor the California wildfires.

The White House said Mr Biden bestowed the award during a phone call in which they also discussed efforts to promote peace and alleviate suffering around the world.

President Joe Biden presents Bono with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Pic: AP
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President Joe Biden presented Bono with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Pic: AP

President Joe Biden presents the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Denzel Washington. Pic: AP
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Denzel Washington was also recognised. Pic: AP

President Joe Biden presents the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Michael J Fox. Pic: AP
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Michael J Fox was bestowed with the honour. Pic: AP

The award can be presented with or without distinction.

Mr Biden presented the medal of freedom – without distinction – on 5 January to several people including fellow Democrat Hillary Clinton, humanitarian and U2 singer Bono, fashion designer Ralph Lauren and actors Michael J Fox and Denzel Washington.

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‘I could have beaten Trump’

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Mr Biden himself is a recipient of the award with distinction, recognised when he was vice president by then president Barack Obama in a surprise ceremony eight years ago.

President Barack Obama presents Vice President Joe Biden with the Presidential Medal of Freedom during a ceremony in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, Jan. 12, 2017. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
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Barack Obama presented Joe Biden with the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction in 2017. File pic: AP

The citation for the pope’s honour said his “mission of serving the poor has never ceased”.

“A loving pastor, he joyfully answers children’s questions about God. A challenging teacher, he commands us to fight for peace and protect the planet. A welcoming leader, he reaches out to different faiths,” it added.

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