Live updates: follow the latest news on Russia-Ukraine
As the prospect of a Russian invasion of Ukraine looms ever larger on the horizon, the Ukrainian soldiers manning the trenches of the Donbas war remain incredulous at the prospect of a conflagration.
“No one can tell what is going to happen tomorrow, all we know is that we'll be ready, no matter what”, says Andrii, 23, clutching the handle of his AK-74 assault rifle. Leaning on a wooden post in a muddy trench on the outskirts of Zolote, eastern Ukraine, the youthful soldier seems unconcerned by the recent Russian troop build-up at the border.
“Every day, we hear something different – they're going to invade, they're not going to invade, they're pulling back,” he sighs. “It's impossible to say what is going to happen.”
Residents of Zolote, a frontline village in the Lugansk region, were reportedly hiding in an earth-floored cellar on Monday, a shelter that was roughly improvised when the separatist conflict erupted in 2014 and has now brought back into service.
"These weeks they started shelling harder. Now they are shelling again," said 33-year-old handyman Oleksiy Kovalenko.
Over the past few weeks, Russia has amassed an estimated 150,000 troops along various stretches of its border with Ukraine, as well as in Belarus and Crimea, prompting fears that it might soon try to invade its western neighbour. In the capital city of Kiev, a number of embassies have been evacuated of personnel, while frantic diplomatic efforts are continuing to defuse the crisis.
But the men of the 24th Mechanised Brigade, a force nicknamed ‘King Danylo’ and manning the frontline positions of Zolote-4, remain composed in the face of this renewed threat. “There is going to be peace, one way or another," explains a fresh-faced private from a lookout position. "I think [Russian President] Putin is just trying to rattle us. I don't believe they're going to attack.”
The Ukrainian trench is located only a couple of hundred metres from the lines of the Russian-backed separatists of the self-proclaimed People's Republic of Luhansk, along the so-called line of contact that has divided eastern Ukraine for the past eight years.
In the event of a further Russian incursion into Ukrainian territory, the 24th mechanised brigade would therefore constitute the first line of defence. However, for its soldiers, keeping their feet dry and staving off boredom seem to be more acute concerns than separatists' bullets.
“You can read books, surf the internet or scroll on social media. Some people play video games in their free time. You have to keep yourself busy,” says Andrii. The native of Lviv has been serving for more than two years, driven as much by the desire to defend his country as by an affinity with the rigid discipline of military service. “I didn't manage to be posted exactly where I wanted, but overall I like it here,” he explains. “We get along well with the guys.”
Asked if he ever feels fear, Andrii lets out a chuckle. “I am used to it now,” says the soldier. “When I first arrived, I was scared when the shooting would start. Now, I don't feel fear, but rather adrenalin.”
For the past eight years, gunfire and mortar shells have been a daily occurrence in the frontline city Zolote, while sniper fire remains a constant threat. In April last year, a Ukrainian soldier was shot dead nearby. He was among 79 servicemen killed in Donbas in 2021 alone.
For unit press officer Nazar Ilnytskyi what had been a calm three weeks in the Zolote-4 section had taken on a darker, more incessant tempo.
"Enemy mortars and artillery are now firing day and night,” he reported in his latest update.
“In the morning and the afternoon, it's generally calm,” explains the burly man in his 30s. “Sometimes, they're trying to provoke us by firing at us with machine guns and automatic rifles. At night, the mortars start.”
As if to prove his point, short bursts of automatic gunfire ring out in the distance. The last one seems to be coming from the Ukrainian positions behind us. The distinct smell of gunpowder starts filling the trench. “See?”, asks Ilnytskyi with a wry smile. The two soldiers around him remain unfazed. As we exit the trench, the press officer gets rid of the mud caking his combat boots. “This is the real enemy here. The mud.”
In a nearby house repurposed into makeshift barracks, a couple of soldiers are preparing dinner. Ukrainian pop music is playing in the background. Hunched over a bucket of potatoes, a stern-looking recruit shrugs off our question on a potential invasion. “I don't know what's going to happen, I can't say. We'll defend ourselves if they attack.”
The dimly-lit house is humming with activity as the men go about their day. Some are reading, others playing on their phones. Most of them are young, no older than 25. Down in what used to be the basement, the rest of the soldiers are sleeping in shifts.
“We change positions on a regular basis and we all manage to get our eight hours of sleep, which is pretty good,” says Andrii. Children’s drawings adorn the walls, contrasting with the row of freshly-greased automatic rifles underneath: hearts coloured with the blue and gold of the Ukrainian flag, a hand grenade sprouting colourful flowers, children holding hands with smiling soldiers.
“They're sent to us by children from all over Ukraine, to thank us. They know we're here to protect them.”
It is a stirring thought as more gunfire can be heard echoing faintly through the village. The stern-looking recruit, now smoking a cigarette in front of the house, remains undisturbed by the clatter in the distance.
On February 18, the Special Monitoring Mission of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe recorded 222 breaches of the ceasefire in the Donetsk region, and 648 violations in Luhansk, where the men of the 24th Mechanised Brigade are posted. Two regions in eastern Ukraine where government and separatist forces have been fighting since 2014 were hit by more than 1,400 explosions on Friday, the monitors said. This figure rose to more than 2,000 on Saturday.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
HOW TO WATCH
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THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Power: 110 horsepower
Torque: 147Nm
Price: From Dh59,700
On sale: now
Racecard
2pm Handicap Dh 90,000 1,800m
2.30pm Handicap Dh120,000 1,950m
3pm Handicap Dh105,000 1,600m
3.30pm Jebel Ali Classic Conditions Dh300,000 1,400m
4pm Maiden Dh75,000 1,600m
4.30pm Conditions Dh250,000 1,400m
5pm Maiden Dh75,000 1,600m
5.30pm Handicap Dh85,000 1,000m
The National selections:
2pm Arch Gold
2.30pm Conclusion
3pm Al Battar
3.30pm Golden Jaguar
4pm Al Motayar
4.30pm Tapi Sioux
5pm Leadership
5.30pm Dahawi
PSA DUBAI WORLD SERIES FINALS LINE-UP
Men’s:
Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY)
Ali Farag (EGY)
Simon Rosner (GER)
Tarek Momen (EGY)
Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL)
Gregory Gaultier (FRA)
Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
Nick Matthew (ENG)
Women's:
Nour El Sherbini (EGY)
Raneem El Welily (EGY)
Nour El Tayeb (EGY)
Laura Massaro (ENG)
Joelle King (NZE)
Camille Serme (FRA)
Nouran Gohar (EGY)
Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG)
The%20specs
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Isle of Dogs
Director: Wes Anderson
Starring: Bryan Cranston, Liev Schreiber, Ed Norton, Greta Gerwig, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum, Scarlett Johansson
Three stars
Zimbabwe v UAE, ODI series
All matches at the Harare Sports Club:
1st ODI, Wednesday, April 10
2nd ODI, Friday, April 12
3rd ODI, Sunday, April 14
4th ODI, Tuesday, April 16
UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
UAE squad
Esha Oza (captain), Al Maseera Jahangir, Emily Thomas, Heena Hotchandani, Indhuja Nandakumar, Katie Thompson, Lavanya Keny, Mehak Thakur, Michelle Botha, Rinitha Rajith, Samaira Dharnidharka, Siya Gokhale, Sashikala Silva, Suraksha Kotte, Theertha Satish (wicketkeeper) Udeni Kuruppuarachchige, Vaishnave Mahesh.
UAE tour of Zimbabwe
All matches in Bulawayo
Friday, Sept 26 – First ODI
Sunday, Sept 28 – Second ODI
Tuesday, Sept 30 – Third ODI
Thursday, Oct 2 – Fourth ODI
Sunday, Oct 5 – First T20I
Monday, Oct 6 – Second T20I
Scorline
Iraq 1-0 UAE
Iraq Hussein 28’
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed dual clutch
Power: 710bhp
Torque: 770Nm
Speed: 0-100km/h 2.9 seconds
Top Speed: 340km/h
Price: Dh1,000,885
On sale: now
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, Group B
Barcelona v Inter Milan
Camp Nou, Barcelona
Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
The five stages of early child’s play
From Dubai-based clinical psychologist Daniella Salazar:
1. Solitary Play: This is where Infants and toddlers start to play on their own without seeming to notice the people around them. This is the beginning of play.
2. Onlooker play: This occurs where the toddler enjoys watching other people play. There doesn’t necessarily need to be any effort to begin play. They are learning how to imitate behaviours from others. This type of play may also appear in children who are more shy and introverted.
3. Parallel Play: This generally starts when children begin playing side-by-side without any interaction. Even though they aren’t physically interacting they are paying attention to each other. This is the beginning of the desire to be with other children.
4. Associative Play: At around age four or five, children become more interested in each other than in toys and begin to interact more. In this stage children start asking questions and talking about the different activities they are engaging in. They realise they have similar goals in play such as building a tower or playing with cars.
5. Social Play: In this stage children are starting to socialise more. They begin to share ideas and follow certain rules in a game. They slowly learn the definition of teamwork. They get to engage in basic social skills and interests begin to lead social interactions.
yallacompare profile
Date of launch: 2014
Founder: Jon Richards, founder and chief executive; Samer Chebab, co-founder and chief operating officer, and Jonathan Rawlings, co-founder and chief financial officer
Based: Media City, Dubai
Sector: Financial services
Size: 120 employees
Investors: 2014: $500,000 in a seed round led by Mulverhill Associates; 2015: $3m in Series A funding led by STC Ventures (managed by Iris Capital), Wamda and Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority; 2019: $8m in Series B funding with the same investors as Series A along with Precinct Partners, Saned and Argo Ventures (the VC arm of multinational insurer Argo Group)
Chef Nobu's advice for eating sushi
“One mistake people always make is adding extra wasabi. There is no need for this, because it should already be there between the rice and the fish.
“When eating nigiri, you must dip the fish – not the rice – in soy sauce, otherwise the rice will collapse. Also, don’t use too much soy sauce or it will make you thirsty. For sushi rolls, dip a little of the rice-covered roll lightly in soy sauce and eat in one bite.
“Chopsticks are acceptable, but really, I recommend using your fingers for sushi. Do use chopsticks for sashimi, though.
“The ginger should be eaten separately as a palette cleanser and used to clear the mouth when switching between different pieces of fish.”
Results
2.30pm: Dubai Creek Tower – Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (Dirt) 1,200m; Winner: Marmara Xm, Gary Sanchez (jockey), Abdelkhir Adam (trainer)
3pm: Al Yasmeen – Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m; Winner: AS Hajez, Jesus Rosales, Khalifa Al Neyadi
3.30pm: Al Ferdous – Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m; Winner: Soukainah, Sebastien Martino, Jean-Claude Pecout
4pm: The Crown Prince Of Sharjah – Prestige (PA) Dh200,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: AF Thayer, Ray Dawson, Ernst Oertel
4.30pm: Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Cup – Handicap (TB) Dh200,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: George Villiers, Antonio Fresu, Bhupat Seemar
5pm: Palma Spring – Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Es Abu Mousa, Antonio Fresu, Abubakar Daud
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
UJDA CHAMAN
Produced: Panorama Studios International
Directed: Abhishek Pathak
Cast: Sunny Singh, Maanvi Gagroo, Grusha Kapoor, Saurabh Shukla
Rating: 3.5 /5 stars
Porsche Taycan Turbo specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 1050Nm
Range: 450km
Price: Dh601,800
On sale: now
Director: Shady Ali
Cast: Boumi Fouad , Mohamed Tharout and Hisham Ismael
Rating: 3/5
