Ukraine returns 160 military personnel, Russia launches new attacks

Ukraine successfully repatriated 160 military personnel from Russian captivity, marking the 76th prisoner exchange, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed. All individuals had been held since 2022, with 115 identified as defenders of Mariupol. The ages of those released spanned from 26 to 66. The Russian Ministry of Defense also acknowledged the exchange.

Concurrently, Russian forces conducted an overnight assault on June 26, deploying seven Iskander-M ballistic missiles and 189 uncrewed aerial vehicles towards the Kyiv and Poltava regions. Ukrainian air defenses successfully intercepted a majority of the incoming threats, though four missiles and eleven drones struck various sites. Meanwhile, Ukraine's General Staff updated its assessment of Russian military personnel losses, now exceeding 1.39 million since the full-scale invasion commenced, with 1,310 reported in the preceding 24 hours.

Sources: Громадське, Радіо Свобода, Українська правда