A major Ukrainian counter offensive has long been expected.

Although we know Kyiv has been working on it for a while, the war-torn country has repeatedly said it would not give any advance warning of its start.

As well as time to train their troops, Ukraine has repeatedly asked Western allies for more military equipment.

There has been a notable increase in military activity, and Ukraine claims to have made marginal gains on the frontline.

Ukrainian officials have said the breached dam will not jeopardise their odds tactically. But President Volodymyr Zelensky has largely condemned it and a war crime investigation was opened by the country’s top prosecutor.

The Ukrainian air force released a statement early on Friday, saying that it had shot down four cruise missiles and 10 attack drones during a Russian overnight strike.

The statement added that Russian forces had launched 16 drones and six cruise missiles during the attack, and that two other cruise missiles had struck a civilian object in central Ukraine during an earlier attack on Thursday evening.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned of the risk of a cholera outbreak in the breached dam area in southern Ukraine.

WHO chief Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus said the impact of subsequent flooding and damage to infrastructure in the region could not be underestimated and sanitation systems would be affected.

Teresa Zakaria, technical officer for emergencies response at WHO, says they've not seen any cases of cholera since the start of the war but traces of the cholera bacteria were previously found in Ukraine. Therefore, Zakaria adds, the flooding caused the breached dam "heightened" surveillance for waterborne diseases in the area.

Paul Adams
Diplomatic correspondent, in Ukraine

The emergency created by Tuesday’s destruction of the dam at Nova Kakhovka continues to preoccupy the government here.

One of the most acute problems is how to maintain supplies of drinking water to a number of towns and cities that once depended on the dam and the reservoir behind it.

But President Volodymyr Zelensky also has a war to fight.

Last night he posted a picture of a meeting with three of his top generals, a map spread out on the table before them.

The government is deliberately saying little about its plans, but it’s clear that its long-awaited counter-offensive is now under way - with its forces probing Russian positions at several points along the front line, looking for signs of weakness.

The deputy defence minister says advances are also being made around the city of Bakhmut.

Rescue efforts continued after the Kakhovka dam breach, which has flooded 30 communities along the Dnipro river.

Ukraine and Russia accused each other of shelling flood evacuees.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the flooded region, and appealed for international aid.

The Red Cross warned dislodged landmines floating downstream could "pose a risk to people for decades to come".

Although Ukraine remains tight-lipped about its latest military moves, the US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) says Kyiv’s counter-offensive has begun.

In its latest report,, external the ISW says: “Ukraine has conducted counter-offensive operations with differential outcomes in at least three sectors of the front as part of wider counteroffensive efforts that have been unfolding since Sunday, 4 June.”

It says Ukrainian forces "had a limited but still significant attack" in the Zaporizhzhia region overnight from Wednesday to Thursday.

"Russian forces apparently defended against this attack in a doctrinally sound manner and had reportedly regained their initial positions," the US think-tank says.

Jaroslav Lukiv

Image source, Reuters

Russian officials and military bloggers have reported heavy fighting in the key southern Zaporizhzhia region overnight.

They say Ukrainian troops are trying to advance south of the town of Orikhiv, where Ukraine’s Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said on Thursday the enemy was in "active defence".

Several military experts have said Ukraine's military will likely focus on Zaporizhzhia, trying to regain access to the Sea of Azov, splitting the occupying Russian forces in the region into two detached groupings.

That would not only weaken their combat capabilities, but also eliminate a land bridge to Crimea - Ukraine's southern peninsula illegally annexed by Russia in 2014.

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Welcome to our live coverage of the war in Ukraine

Overnight, Ukrainian attacks in the key southern Zaporizhzhia region have been continuing, Russian officials and military bloggers have reported heavy fighting there.

They say Ukrainian troops - backed by tanks, artillery and drones - are trying to advance south of the town of Orikhiv for the second night running.

Yesterday evening, two missiles hit sites near the central city of Uman, injuring eight people according to the regional governor.

Meanwhile, the Dnipro river continues to swell since the Kakhovka dam collapsed on Tuesday, with Ukraine accusing Russia of attacking evacuation points for those fleeing the flooding.

Stick with us as we bring you the latest developments.