Russia-Ukraine updates: Russian missile strikes hit multiple Ukrainian cities

Dozens of injuries were reported in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities.

ByKevin Shalvey, Nadine El-Bawab, Ivan Pereira, Morgan Winsor, and Meredith Deliso
Last Updated: September 6, 2023, 11:47 AM EDT

Russia has continued a nearly 19-month-long invasion of neighboring Ukraine. Recently, though, the Ukrainians have gone on a counteroffensive, fighting to reclaim occupied territory.

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Latest headlines:

Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Jun 24, 2023, 5:37 AM EDT

Chechen leader backs Putin, says forces moving into 'zones of tension'

The powerful head of Chechnya, the semi-independent Russian region, Ramzan Kadyrov, said on Saturday he supported President Vladimir Putin.

Kadyrov saiud he fully backs Putin and called Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin's actions "treacherous."

In this file photo Chechnya's regional leader Ramzan Kadyrov, arrives to attend a ceremony to sign the treaties for four regions of Ukraine to join Russia in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Sept. 30, 2022.
Mikhail Metzel/AP

Kadyrov has tens of thousands of heavily armed fighters. He said his forces are already moving to "zones of tension."

It raises prospect of Chechen forces fighting with Wagner Group troops.

Kadyrov has previously been friendly with Prigozhin -- his coming out in support of Putin is a boost for Putin, but also raises prospect of serious clashes in Russia.

-ABC News' Patrick Reevell

Jun 24, 2023, 5:27 AM EDT

Next 48 hours 'will define' Russia, Zelenskyy advisor says

Russian leaders are "now choosing which side they are on," an advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday.

"The next 48 hours will define the new status of Russia," Mykhailo Podolyak said on Twitter. "Either a full-fledged Civil War, or a negotiated Transit of Power, or a temporary respite before the next phase of the downfall of the Putin regime."

He added, "A deafening 'elite' silence is in Russia so far..."

Jun 24, 2023, 3:52 AM EDT

Uprising 'significant challenge' to Russian state, UK says

Members of the mercenary Wagner Group have begun moving north "almost certainly aiming to get to Moscow," in what amounts to the "most significant challenge to the Russian state in recent times," the U.K. Ministry of Defense said on Saturday.

"Over the coming hours, the loyalty of Russia's security forces, and especially the Russian National Guard, will be key to how the crisis plays out," the ministry said on Twitter.

Jun 24, 2023, 3:25 AM EDT

Putin: Wagner Group moves are 'stab in the back'

Russian President Vladimir Putin said moves taken by Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, a longtime ally, to bring his troops into a key Russian city amounted to a "stab in the back."

This photograph shows Russia's President Vladimir Putin, seen on a laptop screen, making a statement in Moscow, on June 24, 2023 as Wagner fighters stage rebellion.
Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP via Getty Images

Putin didn't mention Prigozhin by name, but said that "necessary orders have been given" to defend Russia in a recorded address aired on Russian television on Saturday.

"Actions that divide our unity are in essence defeatism before one's own people," he said. "This is a stab in the back of our country and our people."

-ABC News' KJ Edelman

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