Russia and Ukraine on Saturday accused each other of violating a brief ceasefire in their four-year-old war, hours into the truce put in place to mark Orthodox Easter. Governors of two Russian border regions said Ukrainian drones had attacked targets in the Kursk and Belgorod regions, injuring five people. The general staff of Ukraine’s military said Russian forces had violated the terms of the 32-hour truce through assault actions, shelling and drone strikes. Despite tensions over the truce, the warring sides exchanged 175 prisoners of war each on Saturday, according to officials from both sides. The Ukrainian president repeated that Ukraine would stick to the truce and wished it could be in effect longer.

Source: The Guardian April 12, 2026 02:34 UTC