Image source, Kochevenko/Facebook

We're pausing our live coverage for today. We'll bring you the latest updates and analysis again on Sunday. For now, here are today's main developments:

• The key eastern city of Severodonetsk continues to see intense fighting, with Ukraine saying its forces have recaptured part of the city. Russia, however, claims several Ukrainian units are retreating. "The Russian army is throwing all its power in this direction," the regional governor said
• A church at a famous monastery in eastern Ukraine, Sviatohirsk Lavra, has been set on fire. Ukraine blames Russian bombardment but Russia has accused retreating Ukrainian forces of starting the blaze
• French President Emmanuel Macron has again warned against humiliating Russia, after urging the West in May not to give in to "the temptation of humiliation, nor the spirit of revenge". Macron says France's role is as a "mediating power" between Ukraine and Russia.
• Russian troops continue to shell residential areas of Mykolaiv, with three people killed in attacks this morning, the southern city's mayor says. The BBC has not been able to independently verify this

A St Petersburg classical concert featuring an internationally renowned conductor, Vassily Sinaisky, has been cancelled after he was vilified by Putin supporters for condemning the war in Ukraine.

The official website of the St Petersburg Academic Philharmonia says simply that tonight’s concert is cancelled because of Sinaisky’s “state of health”.

The Russian news sites Kommersant and MK note that Sinaisky was attacked on social media after he condemned the Russian invasion in February. His critics demanded that the concert be cancelled.

The concert was to have celebrated the orchestra’s 140th anniversary. Sinaisky has previously conducted the BBC Philharmonic.

In a statement on a Czech orchestra’s website, external - that of the Janacek Philharmonic Ostrava – on 28 February he said: “The present events feel like a vile invasion into a sovereign state which causes only grief and tragedy for thousands of people."

Image source, Getty Images

As well as the intense battle for the eastern city of Severodonetsk, Russian attacks are continuing in many other locations around Ukraine, according to the evening update from Ukraine's armed forces.

It says artillery shelling was recorded in settlements in the northern Sumy and Chernihiv regions today, while systematic fire continued on Ukrainian positions in the Kharkiv area in the north-east.

In the eastern Donetsk region, there were mortar, artillery and rocket-propelled grenade attacks in several locations, as well as airstrikes on the cities of Soledar and Slovyansk, it says.

Further south, it reports rocket-propelled grenade attacks in the Zaporizhzhia region.

The military says fighting continues for control of the city of Severodonetsk, with artillery and airstrikes in some surrounding areas.

Image source, ,

James Landale
Diplomatic correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

The war in Ukraine has passed the 100th day mark. But how will it end? Here are five possible scenarios:

1. War of attrition: The war might continue for months - if not years - as Russian and Ukrainian forces grind each other down
2. Putin announces a ceasefire: The Russian president could surprise the world with a unilateral ceasefire, pocketing his territorial gains and declaring "victory"
3. Battlefield stalemate: Ukraine and Russia conclude they cannot achieve more militarily and enter talks for a political settlement
4. 'Victory' for Ukraine: Ukraine could force Russian troops to withdraw to where they were before the invasion
5. 'Victory' for Russia: Russia could capitalise on its gains in Donbas, freeing up forces for use elsewhere, perhaps even targeting Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, once again.

Read more about what each scenario entails here.

Ukrainian armed forces units have suffered critical losses - of up to 90% in some units - during the battle for the key eastern city of Severodonetsk, Russia's Defence Ministry says.

In a post on Telegram, it says Ukrainian units are now retreating in the direction of Lysychansk, a city on the other side of the Siverskyi Donets river. The post did not say how many units it was referring to.

Earlier the Ukrainian regional governor said Ukrainian forces had partly pushed back Russian troops who had at one point taken about 70% of the city.

It is not possible for the BBC to verify these claims independently.

As we've been reporting, a church at a famous monastery in eastern Ukraine, Sviatohirsk Lavra, has been set on fire.

Ukraine blames Russian bombardment, but Russia has accused retreating Ukrainian forces of starting the blaze.

Now Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has weighed in, with comments on Telegram: "The occupiers know what they are shelling. They know that there are no military targets on the territory of the Svyatohirsk Lavra, that around 300 laypeople are sheltering from hostilities there, including 60 children."

But the Russians shell the Lavra all the same, like the rest of Donbas."

He reiterated Ukrainian calls for Russia to be excluded from the UN heritage body Unesco: "Every church burnt by Russia in Ukraine, every blown up school, every ruined memorial proves that there is no place for Russia in Unesco."

Chris Partridge
BBC News

There is an interesting, and somewhat unusual, tactic being repeatedly used by Russian attack helicopter crews in Ukraine.

The Ka-52 'Alligator' can use unguided rockets to attack ground targets. These are fire-and-forget munitions which deliver a degree of area suppression but lack pinpoint accuracy.

In several videos released by the Russian defence ministry, we often see from the pitch angle that pilots pull up the helicopter's nose steeply before launching their rockets.

This means the target is likely to be unsighted at launch, delivering questionable accuracy.

Image source, Russian Ministry of Defence

So why might the pilots do this?

Well, by pitching up the nose at this angle, rockets are 'lofted' into the air.

That higher angle of launch gives them greater range, albeit at the expense of their capable accuracy. It is almost like using the weapon as aerial artillery.

But greater range means the helicopter is further away and being further away means you are likely to be outside the attack envelopes of opposing forces.

So in short, this approach is probably a defensive tactic.

Image source, Russian Ministry of Defence

Image source, Alexander Senkevich Telegram channel

Russian troops continue to shell residential areas of Mykolaiv, with three people killed in attacks this morning, the southern city's mayor has said.

In a post on Telegram channel, Alexander Senkevich said four more people were injured and doctors were battling to save their lives.

According to initial information, three high-rise buildings were damaged, he said.

The BBC is not able to independently verify the report.

You can read more about life in the city here: We are holding on, say Mykolaiv residents

Image source, Reuters

Taking a step back for a moment, our diplomatic correspondent Paul Adams has been analysing whether cracks are starting to show in the West's support for Ukraine.

Military experts are predicting a long war of attrition as Russian forces make slow progress in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region.

The UK, Poland and the Baltics have been calling for Putin's unambiguous defeat.

Leaders in other European countries, such as France, Germany and Italy, have hinted at a different approach.

French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian PM Mario Draghi have both called for a ceasefire,

As we reported earlier, Macron has again warned today against humiliating Russia, after urging the West in May not to give in to "the temptation of humiliation, nor the spirit of revenge". Draghi has suggested Europe wants "some credible negotiations".

Latvia's deputy prime minister has criticised the French president and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz after they held an 80-minute phone call with Mr Putin last Saturday to explore ways to export grain through the Black Sea.

"It seems that there are a number of so-called Western leaders who possess the explicit need for self-humiliation, in combination with a total detachment from political reality," Artis Pabriks tweeted, external.

The fear in Ukraine will be that the cracks among Europe's leaders could widen further.

Read more on this story here.

Image source, Getty Images

Now back to diplomacy - and comments by French President Emmanuel Macron, who has cautioned that the West "must not humiliate Russia".

In an interview with French newspapers published today, he said this was important "so that the day when the fighting stops we can build an exit ramp through diplomatic means".

"I am convinced that it is France's role to be a mediating power," he said.

His words haven't gone down very well with Ukraine. Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba tweeted that such calls would "only humiliate France" and others taking the same view.

Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak, who has served as a negotiator in previous Kyiv-Moscow talks, was asked about the French offer to mediate.

Talks would be "pointless" until Ukraine received more weapons and was able to push Russian forces back "as far as possible to the borders of Ukraine", he said in comments on Ukrainian television reported by Reuters.

The Russian Defence Ministry has blamed Ukrainian "nationalist" troops for the Sviatohirsk Lavra Monastery fire.

A ministry message on Telegram says that as units of Ukraine's 79th Airborne Assault Brigade were retreating from Sviatohirsk, "the Ukrainian nationalists set fire to the wooden monastery".

"According to local residents, a burst of incendiary ammunition from a large-calibre machine-gun mounted on a Ukrainian Kozak armoured vehicle was fired into the wooden walls of the domed space of the structure."

The message says Russian forces north of Sviatohirsk "are not conducting combat operations in this area and are not shelling the territory of the Sviatohirsk Historical and Architectural Reserve".

Russia has repeatedly denied shelling civilian areas in Ukraine, and accuses Ukrainian forces of using local civilians as "human shields". But evidence from many Ukrainians and foreign witnesses shows widespread destruction caused by Russian bombardments.

More now on the blaze at a famous wooden monastery in eastern Ukraine, Sviatohirsk Lavra.

A Ukrainian government tweet shows the fine old monastery intact, before it was hit. The monastery is affiliated to the Moscow Patriarchate, which is run by Patriarch Kirill, an ally of President Vladimir Putin and supporter of the Russian military.

The tweet alleges that Russian forces killed four monks there on 30 May - a claim the BBC has not verified.

On Facebook, Ukraine's Culture Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko says this: "The Donetsk eparchy [diocese] of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has confirmed that in this temple, besides monks and nuns, there were 300 refugees, among them disabled and elderly, and nearly 60 children, among them newborns."

Image source, Kochevenko/Facebook

The fighting in Donetsk region has sparked a major fire at a big wooden monastery near the frontline - the Sviatohirsk Lavra Monastery.

"As a result of hostilities, a large-scale fire broke out on the territory of the All Saints Hermitage of the Holy Dormition Sviatohirsk Lavra," the Ukrainian Orthodox Church says on its website. "The flames engulfed the main shrine of the monastery."

A Ukrainian army officer, Yurii Kochevenko, posted a photo of the burning monastery on Facebook, with the caption: "Another crime of Russian barbarians for whom there is nothing sacred."

The monastery stands on cliffs by the Siverskyi Donets river. Russian troops have tried repeatedly to cross the river, aiming to encircle the Ukrainian army. Sviatohirsk lies just north of Slovyansk, a city held by the Ukrainians.

The monastery dates back centuries and was closed by the Communists in the last century, but was reopened in 1992 after the Soviet Union’s collapse.

Joe Inwood
Reporting from Kyiv

Severodonetsk has both strategic and symbolic importance.

The Russians have been advancing for weeks - making what seemed to be a slow but inexorable march towards taking it.

But today, for the first time, Luhansk’s regional governor claimed the tide was turning.

Serhiy Haidaisaid the city’s defenders had reclaimed about a fifth of Severodonetsk - and could hold on.

“As soon as we have enough Western long-range weapons, we will push their artillery away from our positions. And then, believe me, the Russian infantry, they will just run."

The battle for Severodonetsk is not just a military one.

Both sides put out information that suits their agenda. But, if Severodonetsk can be held, it would be a remarkable victory for the Ukrainians – one that could affect the outcome of this war.

Image source, .

If you're just joining us or need a recap, here are the latest developments:

• Ukraine claims to have recaptured parts of the key eastern city of Severodonetsk, Luhansk governor Serhiy Haidai says

• Haidai previously said 70% of the city had fallen to Russian forces
• The Luhansk governor also says Russia has been blowing up bridges west of the city to hold up Ukrainian reinforcements
• Russian air strikes are increasing in the eastern Donbas region, UK military intelligence says
• Russian forces have shot down a Ukrainian military transport plane near the Black Sea port of Odesa, as well as hitting an artillery training centre in the Sumy region in a missile strike, Moscow says

The BBC is not able to independently verify this information.

Image source, .

The governor of the eastern Luhansk region has said Russian forces are blowing up bridges near the key strategic city of Severodonetsk to stop Ukrainian reinforcements from joining the battle.

Serhiy Haidai said Russian forces were facing "huge losses" in Severodonetsk, with the Ukrainian military repelling them. He had previously said they had taken control of 70% of the city.

Severodonetsk and its neighbour Lysychansk are set either side of the Siverskyi Donets river.

Image source, .

Ukraine's president has called on US mayors to cut ties with Russian cities they hold "twin" or "sister" city relationships with.

"Tyrants must not be allowed to enjoy ties to the free world. Any ties," Volodymyr Zelensky said in an online address to the US Conference of Mayors

He gave the examples of Chicago which names Moscow as a sister city, as well as Jacksonville and Murmansk, San Diego and Vladivostok, as well as Albany and Tula.

"What do these connections give you? Probably nothing. But they give Russia the opportunity to say that it is not isolated, even after beginning such a war," Zelensky said.

He also said "some of the most deadly Russian missiles are designed and manufactured in Yekaterinburg. Which, by the way, is still a sister city of San Jose".

Chicago and Albany have both announced temporary suspensions of the relationships.

Zelensky also called on the mayors to involve their cities in rebuilding efforts in Ukraine.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Ukrainian intelligence agents are communicating with Azov regiment servicemen who were taken captive in the southern port city of Mariupol, the Interior Ministry has reported on Telegram.

"It is through them that we learn more about their living conditions, food, and possibilities for their release," the post quoted Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyy as saying.

"We all know that they will end up here, in Kyiv, and we are doing everything to make it happen," he added.

There has been continued uncertainty regarding the fate of hundreds of Ukrainian fighters, who held out in the besieged Azovstal steelworks in the port city for weeks. They were eventually taken to Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine. Ukraine has called for a prisoner swap but some in Russia - including the deputy foreign minister - have said they should be put on trial.

Image source, Reuters

Laura Bicker
Reporting from Mykolaiv

Image source, Moose Campbell

There is shelling every day in Mykolaiv. The Russians are on the outskirts to the east and south, pummelling surrounding villages and forcing thousands to flee.

The wail of the air raid siren is a prelude to a thud to our right as our car makes its way through the suburbs of this major port.

A plume of smoke a few kilometres away confirms the hit - another rocket.

We are following a Ukrainian Red Cross van as they try to rescue some of those coming under regular shelling: yet another busload to add to the already historic human exodus from this country.

These farewells have become a familiar sight across Ukraine over the last 100 days, but they are no less heartbreaking to watch.

Liudmyla has decided it is time for her youngest children to leave. She can't let them play outside as the bombardment continues and she wants them to be somewhere safe.

"I will see them again when the bombing stops," she tells me. But no-one knows when that will be.

Image source, .

Mykolaiv was one of the first cities attacked when the invasion began. Russian forces came close to the city limits but were pushed back.

This region is key to Russian's strategy to cut off the entire southern coast. A breakthrough here would allow the Kremlin's forces to approach Odesa - the country's largest civilian port, 130 km (80 miles) to the west.

Vladimir Putin could then complete his land bridge up to Transnistria, the breakaway republic of Moldova.

Read more of Laura Bicker's report from Mykolaiv here