For today, links to reports from Reuters,Tass, the Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, and the Kyiv Post; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA entry for this date and a MEDIA entry are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Ukraine attack on Russia-controlled town kills 16, official says. From Reuters.  A Russia-installed official in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region said today that the death toll from shelling by Ukraine’s military on the town of Tokmak had risen to 16 people. Yevgeny Balitsky, the top Moscow-installed official in the region, said . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russia hits IRIS-T air defense system launcher, Ukrainian ammunition depot. From Tass. MOSCOW — Over the past 24 hours, the Russian Armed Forces hit a launcher of the IRIS-T anti-aircraft missile system, the Russian Ministry of Defense said. “The launcher of the German-made . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM APRIL 13  Russian soldiers who quit Putin’s war get no hero’s welcome abroad as asylum claims surge, by Erika Kinetz | AP  ASTANA, Kazakhstan — The Associated Press spoke with five officers and one soldier who deserted the Russian military. All have criminal cases against them in Russia. Each is waiting for a welcome from the West that . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine says strengthening defences in battered frontline town. From AFP.  Ukrainian troops defending the frontline town of Chasiv Yar under relentless Russian attack have received additional drones and weaponry, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi said today. After visiting troops defending . . . READ MORE . . .

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Suspected Storm Shadows blast Russian targets in occupied Luhansk. From Kyiv Post. Ukrainian pilots carried out an effective strike on an “enemy facility” in the Russian-occupied Luhansk region on Saturday. Explosions were reported in the area of a machine-building plant. Several Storm Shadow/SCALP cruise missiles are believed . . . READ MORE . . .