TOP HEADLINES

• Russia downed a barrage of 42 Ukrainian drones near Crimea, Moscow's defense ministry said Friday, in the largest recent air attack on the peninsula and a day after Kyiv claimed a special forces raid on the territory.

• The Pentagon said Thursday it would begin training Ukrainian F-16 pilots in the United States starting next month so they can use the advanced aircraft against Russian forces.

• The UK's defense ministry says there is still no "definitive proof" that Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin is dead but says it is "highly likely that he is indeed dead" after a private jet crashed north of Moscow on Wednesday, killing all 10 people onboard.

• UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak added that he is "working closely with allies" to establish exactly what has happened to Prigozhin and establish all the facts surrounding the plane crash.

• The Ministry added that if Prigozhin was killed then his death is likely to leave a power vacuum within the Wagner group an have a destabilizing effect.

• Mark Milley, the United States' top military general, says it's too early to say whether Ukraine's counter-offensive has failed and said Kyiv still has significant combat power available to overcome Russian defenses.

• Ukraine's armed forces say they're currently conducting an offensive operation towards Melitopol in the south east of Ukraine.

READ MORE

Eye witnesses heard 'two loud bangs' before Prigozhin plane crashed

'Battery factory a huge boost for UK car industry'

Balkan Barbie: 11 year-old creates unique range

IN DEPTH

UK says Prigozhin likely dead but no "definitive proof"

The UK Defense Ministry says there is still no 'definitive proof' that Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin is dead but says it is likely that he was killed on Wednesday.

An update from the UK's intelligence agency reads: "Exactly two months after the Wagner Group's mutiny, a Wagner-associated Embraer business jet crashed near Tver, between Moscow and St Petersburg. The Russian authorities claim 10 people onboard died, including Wagner owner Yevgeny Prigozhin.

"There is not yet definitive proof that Prigozhin was onboard and he is known to exercise exceptional security measures. However, it is highly likely that he is indeed dead."

The statement added: "The demise of Prigozhin would almost certainly have a deeply destabilising effect on the Wagner Group. His personal attributes of hyper-activity, exceptional audacity, a drive for results and extreme brutality permeated Wagner and are unlikely to be matched by any successor.

"Wagner's leadership vacuum would be compounded by the reports that founder and field commander Dimitry Utkin and logistics chief Valery Chekalov also died."

Subscribe to Storyboard: A weekly newsletter bringing you the best of CGTN every Friday