Live: Ukraine announces it has liberated two villages in southeast

 Kyiv announced on Sunday that Ukrainian forces have retaken two villages in the war-torn country's south as it continues military operations in Russian-occupied territories. The news comes as the Russian defence ministry said Ukraine had made an unsuccessful attempt to attack a vessel in Russia's Black Sea fleet that was protecting natural gas pipelines. Follow our live blog for the latest updates on the war in Ukraine. All times are Paris time (GMT+2).

6:49pm: Ukraine announces retaking of another village in offensive

Ukraine on Sunday announced its forces had retaken the village of Neskuchne in the eastern Donetsk region, the second reported gain of its offensive operations in Russian-occupied territories.

"Neskuchne of the Donetsk region is under Ukrainian flag again," the state border guard service said after Kyiv earlier announced its troops had retaken the village of Blagodatne, also in the Donetsk region.
6:15pm: Russia and Ukraine announce return of prisoners

Russia and Ukraine both announced on Sunday that nearly 100 soldiers from each side would be returned.

Russia's Defence Ministry, quoted by the state-owned TASS news agency, said that 94 Russians in Ukrainian captivity had been released and would be taken to a medical institution to be examined.

Andriy Yermak, head of Ukraine's presidential administration, said that 95 Ukrainian service members had been returned, including some wounded.
5:52pm: Three dead in Russian shelling of evacuation boat in flooded south

Three people were killed on Sunday and 10 were wounded when Russian forces shelled a boat carrying evacuees from flooded occupied territory to the Ukrainian-controlled city of Kherson, the regional governor said.

The area has been stricken by catastrophic flooding after the destruction of the Kakhovka dam, which both Kyiv and Moscow have accused the other of deliberately blowing up.
5:26pm: Russian air defence systems shot down Ukrainian missile near Berdyansk, TASS reports

Russian air defence systems shot down a Ukrainian missile near the Russian-controlled port city of Berdyansk on the Sea of Azov, the Russian state-owned news agency TASS has reported.
3:57pm: Ukraine announces retaking village in southeast

Kyiv announced on Sunday that Ukrainian forces have retaken a village in the war-torn country's south, the first reported gain of its offensive operations in Russian-occupied territories.

Ukraine's ground forces said in a statement that soldiers of the 68th separate ranger brigade had "liberated the settlement of Blagodatne" in the Donetsk region.
3:32pm: 35 people missing after Ukraine flood, minister says

Thirty-five people, including seven children, were missing in southern Ukraine on Sunday following a devastating flood prosecutors called the "worst environmental catastrophe since Chernobyl".

The Russian-controlled Kakhovka dam along the front line in the Kherson region was destroyed on June 6, forcing thousands to flee and sparking fears of humanitarian as well as environmental disasters.

Ukraine accuses Russia of blowing up the dam on the Dnipro River, while Moscow says Kyiv fired upon the structure.

Ukrainian interior minister Igor Klymenko said that 77 towns and villages had been flooded in the southern regions of Kherson and Mykolaiv. Klymenko said that 35 people were missing in the Kherson region, including seven children.

As a result of the flood, five people died in the region of Kherson and one person was dead in the region of Mykolaiv.

A total of 3,700 people have been evacuated from their homes in the two regions, the minister added in a statement.
2:46pm: Russian defence ministry says Ukrainian Su-25 fighter jet shot down in Kherson region

Russia's defence ministry said on Sunday that Russian forces had shot down a Ukrainian Su-25 fighter jet in the Kherson region, where the breach of the Kakhovka dam on Tuesday led to major flooding.

Russian forces have also repelled three attacks of Ukrainian forces in the Zaporizhzhia region, the ministry said.

Reuters was unable to immediately verify the reports.
2:40pm: Ukrainian army publishes video showing liberation of village in Donetsk region

A video has appeared on the official Facebook page of the 68th brigade of the Ukrainian army, claiming to show the liberation of a village in the Donetsk region. This is the first claimed official liberation of a village since the start of Ukraine's offensive military operations in the nation's southeast. This marks a turning point in the war, as the Ukrainians are now officially declaring that they have taken back at least one locality.

1:51pm: Russia repels Ukraine attack on warship in Black Sea, says defence ministry

Russia's defence ministry said on Sunday that Ukraine had made an unsuccessful attempt to attack a vessel of Russia's Black Sea fleet that was protecting natural gas pipelines.

The ship was monitoring the situation along Turkstream and Blue Stream pipelines route in the Black Sea, the ministry said.
11:28am: No foundation for possible dialogue with Ukraine, says the Kremlin

The Kremlin said there was no foundation for any possible dialogue with Ukraine but also that there were no preconditions for potential talks.

'There is practically no precondition for an agreement at the moment. Moreover, there is no foundation, even flimsy, for any kind of dialogue', Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Rossiya state television.
10:25am: Ukraine says Russian forces blew up dam to prevent offensive

The Khakhovka dam was blown up by Russian forces to prevent Ukrainian troops from advancing in the southern Kherson region, deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar said on Sunday.

Ukraine has accused Russian forces of blowing up the dam from inside its associated hydroelectric power station. The site has been under Russian occupation since the early weeks of Russia's invasion in February last year.

Moscow has blamed the destruction of the dam on Ukraine. Each side has accused the other of shelling civilians as rescue efforts are carried out.

"The explosion of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station was apparently carried out with the intention of preventing the Ukrainian Defence Forces from launching an offensive in the Kherson sector," Maliar said on the Telegram messaging app.
Key developments from Saturday, June 10:

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday that counteroffensive and defensive operations were taking place in Ukraine while refusing to provide further details.

Nuclear energy agency Energoatom says it has put the last operating reactor at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, Europe’s largest, into a “cold shutdown” – a safety precaution amid catastrophic flooding from the collapse of the nearby Kakhovka dam.