World
Ukrainian hopes rest on the West as two-year war anniversary looms
As the grim milestone of two years of war looms, Ukrainians tell Euronews they hope Russia’s brutality and propaganda campaigns will not dent Western support to Kyiv.
Yuliia Kanivska is a mother of one from Irpin, a commuter city that lies 20km north of Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv.
Much of Irpin was destroyed during a month-long occupation in 2022, before it was recaptured by Ukrainian forces.
“I was very scared; we didn’t think that Russia could invade us,” Yuliia told Euronews’ Shona Murray.
Yuliia also worries pro-Russian propaganda could skew the reality of Ukraine’s suffering and undermine Western support for the war-torn nation.
“Because a lot of my relatives live in Russia, my husband’s aunt and her children live in Russia. And now they don’t speak, they don’t communicate because they can’t believe (…) that we are under bombing and we struggle for our freedom,” she explained.
“My husband sent them some photos of destroyed houses saying ‘this is our life’,” she added, “and they sent back (a message saying), ‘oh it’s not so dangerous, it’s ok’.”
“It’s not only in Russia. We were abroad and we met a lot of people who were pro-Russian, and they couldn’t understand, they didn’t believe me,” Yuliia said.
She says Western governments and the NATO military alliance must continue to provide her country with the financial and military support it needs to withstand Russia’s aggression, as Ukraine is fighting not only for its own freedom but for the “freedom of the whole world.”
Earlier in February, EU leaders approved a landmark €50-billion aid package for Ukraine, allowing Kyiv to plug a hole in its public finances and sustain essential services such as healthcare, education, social protection and pensions.
It followed weeks of uncertainty after Hungarian premier Viktor Orbán threatened to wield his veto and block the aid.
On Tuesday, the US Senate also passed its deeply divisive bill on Ukraine aid, which would provide $60 billion (€56 billion) to Kyiv’s coffers.
But the fate of the bill is unclear as it now passes to the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, where it faces stiff opposition. The House’s Republican speaker Mike Johnson has already indicated he will block a vote on the bill.
War splits families
Dimitry, a medic, father and husband from Donetsk, affirms all of Ukraine’s territory must be returned to the state, including Crimea – annexed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2014 – and the occupied eastern region of the Donbas.
His father, who lives in Belgarod, Russia, does not share his views.
“My father thinks Ukraine has a lot of Nazis, and (that) Russia is doing right occupying Ukraine. We don’t have any conversation since 2017, and now it’s impossible,” he explained.
“My father has a letter ‘Z’ on his car. That’s what he’s thinking about this war, he’s supporting Russia,” he added.
Dimitry also says that he wants to “forget” all the “pain” he has seen since the start of the war, but says more weapons and military equipment are needed for Ukraine to take back its territory.
Military experts say the war is at a stalemate, with Putin eagerly awaiting the results of the US and EU elections before deciding on his next strategy.
ADVERTISEMENTAnd after two years, the toll is heavy on those still fighting for their lives.
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June 19, 2026
World
Man charged with attempted murder, released after allegedly forcing toddler into crocodile enclosure at zoo
Man FORCES child into crocodile enclosure
A British man has been arrested after allegedly forcing a 3-year-old boy into a crocodile enclosure at a zoo. The child suffered critical injuries, and authorities say the suspect did not know the boy as the investigation continues.
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A man was released from custody on Friday after he was charged with attempted murder for allegedly forcing a 3-year-old boy into a crocodile enclosure at a zoo.
Cambridgeshire police said that the man, who remains unidentified, wasn’t fit to be interviewed.
The boy suffered critical injuries in the incident at Johnsons of Old Hurst, a farm and zoo in Huntingdon, England, north of London.
The 30-year-old man will remain on bail until Sept. 30, pending further inquiries.
GEORGIA MOM’S WALMART TRIP DEVOLVES INTO ‘TUG-OF-WARRING’ IN DESPERATE ATTEMPT TO SAVE HER SON
A crocodile rests inside an enclosure at Johnsons of Old Hurst, a farm and zoo in Old Hurst, Cambridgeshire, Britain, on April 14, 2026. (Dorota Dee Trajdos/Reuters)
“The man, who is not known to the victim, was assessed as not being fit for interview,” police said in a statement.
The boy is in stable condition, after reportedly suffering a broken arm and pelvis.
He was saved from the crocodile by Tracey Johnson, the wife of the zoo’s owner.
MOTHER JUMPS INTO WATER TO SAVE 4-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER WHO FELL BETWEEN CRUISE SHIP AND DOCK
“I know Tracey very well and she’s a lovely lady and it’s nothing more than I’d expect from her,” a local told BBC News. “She’d always put her own life at risk to save someone else. She’s an extraordinary lady and very brave.
The villager added that Johnson put herself in “immense danger” during the rescue.
The owners said their tropical house would remain closed until further notice.
Crocodiles rest inside an enclosure at Johnsons of Old Hurst farm and zoo in Old Hurst, Cambridgeshire, Britain, on April 14, 2026. (Dorota Dee Trajdos/Reuters)
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the boy and his family following the incident that occurred today,” the owners wrote on social media.
Johnsons of Old Hurst is a farm and zoo north of London in Huntingdon, England. (Google Maps)
Huntingdonshire district councillor Charlotte Lowe said she couldn’t “fathom how it’s happened because they’ve got all the right protection and safety equipment, for want of a better word, in there,” The Guardian reported.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to the Cambridgeshire Constabulary for comment.
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US President Donald Trump has doubled down on his comments on Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, saying she asked him “over and over” for a photo when the pair met at the G7 summit in France earlier this week.
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Following the summit, Trump told an Italian journalist that he “felt sorry for Meloni” after she “begged me to take a picture with her”.
Meloni hit back in a video posted to social media, branding Trump’s claims as “completely made up” and insisting that neither she nor Italy begs anyone for anything.
The once close pair’s relationship has grown increasingly fractious in recent months, particularly since Rome refused to provide the US support for its operations in Iran and after Meloni defended Pope Leo XIV, who was criticised by the Trump administration over his remarks on the war and the US’s immigration policies.
“Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni asked, over and over, for a picture with me during the G-7 meeting in France,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social account on Saturday. “She is doing poorly in Italy with her level of popularity, possibly because she turned down the United States of America, a Country that truly loves and protects Italy, when it came to denying Iran from obtaining or developing a Nuclear Weapon”.
“Now, after the United States defeated Iran militarily, she wants to be friends again in order to get her “numbers up.” No thanks!!!” Trump added.
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