Iran admits sending drones to Russia 'before war in Ukraine'

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8:11pm: External power restored to Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant

External power has been restored to Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant two days after it was disconnected from the power grid after Russian shelling damaged high voltage lines, the UN nuclear watchdog said on Saturday.

Both the plant's external power lines were repaired and reconnection started on Friday afternoon, Rafael Mariano Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said in a statement.

Grossi reiterated his call for the establishment of a nuclear safety and security protection zone around the plant to prevent a nuclear accident, adding: "We can't afford to lose any more time. We must act before it is too late."

4:00pm: Wagner Group opens new headquarters in Saint Petersburg

FRANCE 24's international affairs commentator Douglas Herbert recaps the history of Wagner and talks about the group's new headquarters now open in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

04:44

3:23pm: Ukrainian officials say Iran must recognise consequences of 'complicity' in Russia's invasion

Ukraine on Saturday warned Iran that "the consequences of complicity" with Moscow would be "greater than the benefit" of Russian support after Tehran admitted for the first time sending drones to Russia.

"Tehran should realise that the consequences of complicity in the crimes of the Russian Federation's aggression against Ukraine will be much greater than the benefit of Russia's support," foreign ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko wrote on Facebook.

2:00pm: Ukraine introduces additional electricity rationing amid Russian shelling

Ukraine's state electricity operator on Saturday announced blackouts in Kyiv and seven other regions of the country in the aftermath of Russia's devastating strikes on energy infrastructure. 

The move comes as Russian forces continue to pound Ukrainian cities and villages with missiles and drones, inflicting damage on power plants, water supplies and other civilian targets, in a grinding war that is nearing its nine-month mark. 

1:45pm: Judge in Moscow-occupied Ukraine shot and wounded: authorities

A judge in a Ukrainian town controlled by Moscow was in a "serious" condition after surviving an assassination attempt, a Russia-backed separatist leader in Donetsk said Saturday.

"There was attempt with the use of firearms on a judge of the Supreme Court of the Donetsk Republic Alexander Nikulin," the rebel leader of the self-proclaimed republic, Denis Pushilin, said on Telegram.

Pushilin blamed Kyiv.

"The Ukrainian regime continues to show its vile terrorist methods," Pushilin added, saying the judge had been "giving sentences to Nazi war criminals".

Russia has repeatedly labelled Ukraine's leaders as "Nazis" without any evidence.

12:02pm: Iran admits sending drones to Russia 'before the war in Ukraine'

Iran admitted for the first time on Saturday that it has sent drones to Russia, but insisted they were supplied to its ally before the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

"We supplied Russia with a limited number of drones months before the war in Ukraine," Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said, quoted by the official news agency IRNA.

Ukraine and its Western allies have accused Russia of using Iranian-made drones in recent weeks to carry out attacks in Ukraine. Tehran has repeatedly denied these claims.

>> Ukraine faces new Russian threat from Iran-made ‘kamikaze’ drones

Iran has repeatedly denied that it has been supplying arms to Russia for use in the Ukraine war.

"In a telephone conversation with the Ukrainian foreign minister last week, we agreed that if there was evidence (of Moscow's use of Iranian drones), he would provide it to us," Amir-Abdollahian said.

"If the Ukrainian side keeps its promise, we can discuss this issue in the coming days and we will take into account their evidence," he added.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and REUTERS)