Russian missiles rain on Ukrainian towns as war nears half-year mark

Russia fired rockets at towns to the west of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine on Monday while the capital Kyiv banned rallies this week to commemorate independence from Soviet rule for fear of Russian attacks, as Russia’s war on Ukraine neared the half-year mark.

Artillery and rocket fire close to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear reactor complex, on the Russian-occupied south bank of the Dnipro River, has stirred fears of a nuclear disaster and calls for the surrounding area to be demilitarised. 

Ukraine and Russia have traded blame for the repeated shelling.

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