Volodymyr Zelensky not seriously injured in car crash after battlefield visit

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky was not seriously injured when his car collided with another vehicle following a battlefield visit, his spokesman has said.

Mr Zelensky was returning to Kyiv from the Kharkiv region, where he visited troops in the recaptured city of Izium.

A passenger vehicle collided with the president’s motorcade in the Ukrainian capital, his spokesman Sergii Nikiforov said in a Facebook post.

The driver of the other vehicle received first aid from Mr Zelensky’s medical team and was taken away by ambulance.

Medics examined the president, who suffered no serious injuries, Mr Nikiforov wrote. He did not specify what injuries Mr Zelensky might have suffered.

The spokesman said the circumstances of the accident were under investigation.

Mr Zelensky was late in posting the nightly video address that he has given during the war, possibly because of the car accident.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was not seriously injured when his car collided with another vehicle following a battlefield visit, his spokesman said

It came as Russian troops targeted critical infrastructure in the president’s hometown.

Eight cruise missiles aimed at water equipment hit Kryvyi Rih, a city on the Inhulets River 93 miles south-west of Dnipro, according to the deputy head of the president’s office, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, on his Telegram channel.

Mr Zelensky said the strikes appeared to be an attempt to flood the city and that a dam on a reservoir was hit.

Video posted online showed elevated water levels on the Inhulets and flooded city streets, as evacuations of residents were suggested.

In the latest intelligence update, the Ministry of Defence said: “Ukrainian forces continue to consolidate their control of newly liberated areas of Kharkiv Oblast. Russian forces have largely withdrawn from the area west of the Oskil River.

"The way in which Russian forces have withdrawn in the last week has varied. Some units retreated in relatively good order and under control, while others fled in apparent panic.”

It added: “High-value equipment abandoned by retreating Russian forces included capabilities essential to enable Russia’s artillery-centric style of warfare. Amongst these are at least one ZOOPARK counter-battery radar and at least one IV14 artillery command and control vehicle.

"Such abandonment highlights the disorganised retreat of some Russian units and likely localised breakdowns in command and control.”