The Russian invasion

Attack on Zelenskyi's hometown - 60-year-old killed  

At least two civilians have been killed in Russian attacks on Ukraine overnight. That is reported by Reuters and AP.  

 

In President Volodymyr Zelensky's hometown of Kryvyi Rih in central Ukraine, a 60-year-old man was killed when a Russian robot crashed into an industrial building, according to a city mayor on Telegram. At the same time, the man's wife is said to have been taken to hospital seriously injured. 

 

During Saturday, new Russian robot and drone attacks were directed at the same location, but without anyone being injured. In the past 24 hours, another person has been killed after a Russian attack in the Kherson region. 

 

In the town of Avdiivka, near the front, a civilian has been injured after another attack.  

 

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Sources: The EU is preparing a new sanctions package against Moscow  

 

A new, the twelfth in a row, sanctions package against Russia is being prepared by the European Commission together with the member states, sources state.  

 

Among other things, a ban on trading in Russian diamonds is proposed. In addition, the EU will try to hit harder against those who try to circumvent the sanctions, by listing companies, operating in countries around Russia, that help the Russians gain access to blocked goods.  

 

The EU is also expected to come up with proposals to expand the list of prohibited goods that Russia can use for military use.  

 

The EU is also discussing together with the G7 countries, the world's largest developed economies, to plug the leaking price ceiling on Russian oil, which was previously set at a maximum of 60 dollars per barrel.  

 

According to the sources, however, much work remains to produce the new sanctions package, so it will take some time before it lands on the table for EU countries' decision-makers to decide on.  

 

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Expert: Russia blocks "overwhelming" hatred of Sweden  

 

Russia is exploiting and fueling a wave of Islamist propaganda against Sweden. This is what the Director General of the Psychological Defense Agency, Magnus Hjort, tells The Times. The purpose is believed to be to destabilize Sweden during the NATO process. 

 

- Russia is trying to use a narrative about Islamophobia in Sweden, and that we are hiding behind freedom of expression, says Hjort.  

 

Hjort describes the amount of hostile online activity against Sweden as "overwhelming at times", but says it is important to believe that it is possible to make Sweden a safer place. 

 

 - If you lose hope, you lose everything. So let's not do that.