Ukrainian President cancels Eurovision appearance after Russian shelling attack kills four
Petro Poroshenko says he and wife Marina pulled out after deaths of 'peaceful civillians' caught up in conflict in the eastern part of the country
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko cancelled his planned appearance at the Eurovision Song Contest in Kiev after a shelling attack in the war-torn eastern part of the country reportedly killed four civilians.
The head of the conflict-riven Donetsk region of the country said the deaths occurred when “Russian occupying forces” shelled a block of flats.
“Three women and one man was killed," he said on his Facebook page.
Mr Poroshenko said on Facebook he was planning “to be at the contest final with (my wife) Marina and invited our fighters and people with disabilities to support Ukraine.
“However due to the shelling of Avdiivka and the death of peaceful civilians, I took a decision to cancel my presence at the Eurovision final."
Russia was banned from appearing at Eurovision by the Ukrainian security services because she had performed in Crimea.
27-year-old singer Russian, Yulia Samoylova, had been chosen to represent the country but because she had toured in Russia-annexed Crimea without going through the border with the Ukrainian mainland, authorities were allowed to block her entry.
The latest deaths represent the single biggest loss of civilian life since a new truce in the three-year war came into effect on 1 April.
The attack took place in Avdiivka – a flashpoint suburb of the Russian-backed insurgents' de facto capital city of Donetsk.
The four reported casualties bring the number of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians officially reported killed this month to 14.
Ukraine has accused Russia of plotting and backing the conflict in which more than 10,000 have died - a charge denied by Moscow.
The war zone lies approximately 300 miles to the east of the capital Kiev where thousands of tourists gathered to watch the annual televised song competition.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments