May 31, 2023 - Russia-Ukraine news

Four people were injured in a "massive strike" on the town of Shebekino in Russia's southwestern Belgorod region, Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Telegram. 

Gladkov earlier reported that one woman was injured in shelling of the region, which borders northeastern Ukraine

Eight apartment buildings, four homes, a school and two administrative buildings were damaged in the shelling, Gladkov said.

Children will be evacuated from Shebekino and the border town of Grayvoron, with the first 300 taken on Wednesday further east to the town of Voronezh, he added.

On Tuesday, Gladkov reported dozens of strikes by Ukrainian mortar and artillery fire in several areas of Belgorod. One person was killed and two others were injured in an attack on a temporary accommodation center, he said.

CNN cannot independently verify the governor's claims.

It comes after a group of anti-Putin Russian nationals, who are aligned with the Ukrainian army, claimed responsibility for an attack in Belgorod last week. The Ukrainian government distanced itself from the Russian fighters, saying: “In Ukraine these units are part of defense and security forces. In Russia they are acting as independent entities.”

Berlin is revoking the licenses of four out of five Russian consulates in Germany in response to Moscow's decision to limit the number of German officials in Russia to 350, according to a spokesperson for the German Foreign Office.

The withdrawal of Russian officials is to be completed by the end of the year, the spokesperson said.

At the same time, the German consulates in Russia's Kaliningrad, Yekaterinburg and Novosibirsk will be closed, the spokesperson added. 

The German embassy in Moscow and the consulate in St. Petersburg will remain in operation.

Ukrainian officials said an explosion near the Three Sisters monument at the border with Belarus, Russia and Ukraine on Tuesday was due to Russian forces blowing up the Chernihiv-Bryansk road.  

CNN has geolocated a video that has been widely circulated on social media showing a large explosion on the road leading to the monument. It is unclear what kind of munition was involved.

Andrii Demchenko, spokesperson for the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, told CNN: "Yesterday, in the Chernihiv region, border detachments of the State Border Guard Service registered an explosion at noon in the direction of the junction of the three countries."

Andriy Yermak, the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, posted on Telegram: "Russians blow up the roads on the borders on which they went 'to take Kyiv in three days'."

Russian war bloggers shared a video of the explosion online Tuesday saying the explosion happened at the junction of the borders of Ukraine, Belarus and Russia, “in a tank-hazardous direction."

Russian or Belarusian officials have not yet commented. 

Some background: The Three Sisters monument, which opened on May 3, 1975, was built to symbolize the friendship of the three countries, which were at the time republics within the Soviet Union.

Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, said Wednesday Russia will continue improving its air defense system following the Tuesday drone attack on Moscow.

President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday the city's air defenses worked normally but there was still “work to be done to make it better.”

Asked to clarify the Russian President’s remarks, Peskov said, “The system worked effectively, but there is room for improvement. Work will continue to improve the air defense system.”

Peskov added the Kremlin had noted the reaction from London and Washington to the Moscow drone attacks but “would prefer to hear at least some words of condemnation.”

Some context: Peskov's words come after a drone attack was launched on Russia's Bryansk region, state news agency RIA Novosti said Wednesday.

About 10 drones tried to attack the Klimovsky district overnight, RIA reported, citing emergency services.

Russian defense enterprises "have multiplied" their production of weapons and other military equipment needed for what Moscow euphemistically calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said Wednesday, according to state news agency TASS. 

Russia has also introduced a temporary ban on the export of cartridges for civilian and service rifles, as well as cartridge cases and cartridges for rifled firearms of certain calibers, according to a statement released by the Russian government on Wednesday. 

The decree, signed by Mishustin, takes effect on May 31 and states that the ban does not apply to the export of cartridges and cartridge cases meant for the activities of Russia's Armed Forces, "other troops" and "military formations," according to the statement. 

"The decision is aimed at ensuring the protection of the interests of the state," the statement reads. 

The decree was prepared as part of the execution of a Presidential Decree “On the Application of Special Economic Measures in the Sphere of Foreign Economic Activity to Ensure the Security of the Russian Federation," according to the statement. 

The ban will remain in effect until the end of the year. 

The Kremlin is concerned about the situation in Belgorod, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told CNN in a regular call with journalists on Wednesday.

Some context: His comments come after the town of Shebekino in Russia's Belgorod region was hit by a "massive strike," injuring four people, Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Telegram Wednesday. 

Eight apartment buildings, four private homes, a school and two administrative buildings were all damaged in the shelling, according to Gladkov.

Gladkov also said that children will be evacuated out of Shebekino and Grayvoron, with the first 300 taken today to Voronezh.

A drone attack was launched on Russia's Bryansk region, state news agency RIA Novosti said Wednesday.

About 10 drones tried to attack the Klimovsky district overnight, RIA reported, citing emergency services.

RIA did not report any damage and said some of the drones were shot down, while others were intercepted by electronic warfare.

Bryansk is on the border with Ukraine and has seen previous attacks blamed on Kyiv.

Remember: Earlier this month, there were unconfirmed reports that four of Russia's aircraft were shot down inside Bryansk.

One Russian media outlet says that at least two combat aircraft – an Su-34 and an Su-35 – and two Mi-8 helicopters crashed.

Ukraine did not confirm its air defenses were involved in the reported downing of the Russian aircraft, but said the aircraft “ran into some trouble.”

A beluga whale known internationally as an alleged Russian "spy" has entered Swedish waters, an organization set up to track the whale announced Monday.

The whale, nicknamed Hvaldimir, garnered international fame in 2019 after it was spotted wearing a specially made harness with mounts for a camera, leading experts to believe that it may have been trained by the Russian military.

“After four years of swimming south down the coast of Norway, Hvaldimir — known worldwide as the 'Russian spy' beluga whale — is now in Swedish waters,” the organization OneWhale said in a statement.

Hvaldimir was recently spotted in Norway’s capital Oslo, prompting concerns for the whale’s safety given the heavy boat traffic in the area.

“But the famous beluga skirted around the dangerous waters of Oslo for Sweden,” OneWhale’s statement said. "We are impressed by Sweden's show of care for Hvaldimir. They immediately contacted us upon his arrival, and even closed a bridge to protect him." 

President of OneWhale, Rich German, said, "Hvaldimir's situation remains an extremely vulnerable one as Sweden is a highly populated country, but we are very grateful Swedish authorities have quickly taken action to care for the whale."

Watch CNN's Melissa Bell's report here.

South Africa has issued diplomatic immunity to all officials attending a summit in August, meaning Russian President Vladimir Putin might be able to travel to the country despite an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant for his arrest.

South African officials, which announced the controversial decision on Monday in a government gazette notice, insisted that it may not override the ICC arrest warrant. As a signatory to the ICC, South Africa may be legally obligated to arrest Putin. The court issued a warrant for his arrest in March over the alleged deportation of children from Ukraine to Russia.

South Africa is hosting a meeting of the BRICS group of developing nations -- Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa -- in August.

The ministry said this was routine protocol to protect the conference and its attendees, not for specific individuals, adding that "these immunities do not override any warrant that may have been issued by any international tribunal against any attendee of the conference."

South Africa's main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), said in a statement Tuesday that it had launched a court application to request the government detain Putin and surrender him to the ICC, if he were to visit the country. The DA said their application outlines precise steps to be taken should a request for Putin’s arrest be made by the ICC, so that there is "no legal ambiguity relating to the procedure to be followed, and the obligations placed upon the state."

Some background: The South African government has come under intense criticism for its stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and has routinely abstained from votes condemning Russia at the United Nations General Assembly. 

While South African leadership has repeatedly stated that they are neutral in the conflict and have frequently called for a negotiated settlement, their actions have come under increasing scrutiny from Western powers. Earlier this month, the US ambassador to South Africa accused the South African government of delivering arms and ammunition to a sanctioned Russian cargo vessel late last year.

Previous reporting from CNN's David McKenzie