Zelenskyy shows F-16 and Mahuchikh becomes Olympic champion: highlights for August 4

Zelenskyy shows F-16s in Ukraine

On August 4, Air Force Day, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that F-16s are already in Ukraine.

The F-16s, along with MiG-29s and Su-27s, flew over during a ceremony to greet the military. In addition, two F-16s stood behind Zelenskyy as he spoke to the military and journalists.

Mahuchikh wins gold for Ukraine

Ukrainian track and field athlete Yaroslava Mahuchikh became the Olympic high jump champion, taking first place in the final of the 2024 Olympic Games. This is Ukraine's second gold medal at the Paris Olympics. Another Ukrainian jumper, Iryna Gerashchenko, won a bronze medal.

More Olympic news

Athlete Mykhailo Kokhan took third place in the hammer throw final at the 2024 Olympic Games. His best result was 79.39 meters.

Boxer Oleksandr Khyzhniak defeated his opponent, Cuban Arlen Lopez, in the semifinal match. He guaranteed Ukraine at least a silver medal.

Rifleman Pavlo Korostylov qualified for the finals of the 2024 Olympic Games in small-caliber pistol shooting at a distance of 25 meters.

Russia says it sent a “signal” to Austin

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin “received a signal” from his Russian counterpart Andrei Belousov, which allegedly helped to avoid an “escalation” between the countries.

Earlier, the New York Times, citing three unnamed U.S. officials, wrote that during a telephone conversation, Belousov told Austin that Moscow had discovered Ukraine's preparations for a “covert operation” against Russia, which Washington had allegedly previously approved.

TRC was allegedly “stormed” in Volyn

In Kovel, Volyn region, a rally was held near the local military enlistment office, where men were allegedly held. The Territorial Recruitment Center stated that the conflict was supported by Russian special services.

They explained that the three men were taken to the military enlistment office to check their military records, emphasizing that the detention was carried out by police officers.

After that, “calls for rebellion” spread in social networks of the Kovel community and Volyn region, which were noticed by Russian propaganda channels, the TRC said in a statement.

Zatoka restaurant owner apologizes after language scandal

The owner of the Burger Z restaurant in Zatoka, Odesa region, apologized for the situation when her restaurant refused to serve a girl in Ukrainian.

She called the situation a “misunderstanding”, promising that it would not happen again, because, according to her, the restaurant respects the Ukrainian language and Ukraine.

She also assured that she would rebrand the restaurant to remove the letter Z from the name.

Senegal summons Ukrainian ambassador for allegedly supporting Tuareg

The Senegalese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has summoned Ukraine's Ambassador Yurii Pyvovarov over a post in which the diplomat allegedly expressed support for the Tuareg in Mali, who attacked members of the Russian Wagner PMC.

It is not specified what kind of post it was. The African news agency APA writes that it is a video in which a Ukrainian intelligence spokesperson claims that Ukraine provided information to the Tuareg to attack the Wagner mercenaries.

Kuleba goes on African tour again

Ukraine's Foreign Minister will visit Malawi, Zambia, and Mauritius for the first time in history. This is the fourth African tour of the current Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

Among the key topics is the participation of African states in global efforts to restore a just peace for Ukraine and the world.

Occupiers sentence UOC-MP priest to 14 years in prison

In the temporarily occupied territory of the Zaporizhzhia region, the Russian occupiers found a priest of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, Konstantin Maksimov, guilty of “espionage” and sentenced him to 14 years in a maximum security colony. He disappeared in May 2023 when he tried to leave through Crimea. It was believed that the priest was taken to a filtration camp.

More than 740 children to be evacuated from Donetsk region

Another 744 children and their families are to be evacuated from the Donetsk region to safer regions of Ukraine. In total, the forced evacuation will cover more than 10 settlements.

In particular, children will be evacuated from the town of Novohrodivka and the Hrodivska community.

Other important news of the day

• A rescuer who was injured while extinguishing a fire in the center of Odesa dies in hospital.
• After the explosions in Luhansk, a fire broke out on the territory of a machine-building plant.
• The shelling of the railroad affected the plans of thousands of Ukrainians. Some trains were 10 hours late.
• A former deputy of the Chernivtsi City Council, Dmytro Sirman, was killed in the war.
• Dozens of far-right protests broke out in the UK. A number of them turned into clashes and arson attacks.