Jailed Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny dies, prison service says

Since he was imprisoned in 2021, Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine via social media and encouraged anti-war protests across the country.

The reported death of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s most high-profile critic punctuates a crackdown on dissidence in Russia that has accelerated during the war.

Here’s the latest on Russia’s war in Ukraine:

Attacks continue: At least five people were killed and five injured in Russian attacks in the Kharkiv, Kherson and Donetsk regions of Ukraine in the past 24 hours, local officials said Friday.

Frontline battle: Ukraine’s Third Separate Assault Brigade said at least 15,000 enemy troops are fighting on the front line in the town of Avdiivka, located in the eastern Donetsk region. Russia has been pummeling the town with airstrikes and artillery, while launching wave after wave of ground assaults by armored vehicles and soldiers. Ukraine’s new army chief Oleksandr Syrskyi and Ukraine’s Defense Minister Rustem Umerov this week visited soldiers on the front lines there.

A senior US defense official said Friday that Ukrainian forces fighting in Avdiivka are “running short on critical supplies, particularly ammunition.”  

Uncertain future: The senior US defense official issued a stark warning on Friday that if Congress does not approve more funding for security assistance to Ukraine, the US will not be able to provide Ukraine more air defenses, which will lead to more cities being “bombarded.”

Cost of war: The US estimated the war in Ukraine has cost Russia up to $211 billion in efforts to upkeep operations, a senior defense official told reporters on Friday, and it has cost Russia an expected $1.3 trillion in lost economic growth. 

All of that is in addition to personnel losses, the official said. Officials estimate Russian forces have lost 315,000 people. The official also said Ukrainian forces have “sunk, destroyed, or damaged” at least 20 “medium-to-large Russian Federation Navy vessels” and one Russian tanker in the Black Sea.

Agreement with Germany: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday secured new military aid and signed a long-term security agreement with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin. The security agreement, which will last for 10 years, commits Germany to supporting Ukraine with military aid and hitting Russia with sanctions and export controls, and ensuring that Russian assets remain frozen.

The latest battleground map: