UKRAINE wants sanctions that are economically destructive enough for Russia to end its war after Ukraine accused some countries of still prioritising money over punishment for civilian killings that the West condemns as war crimes. 

FIGHTING

* The eastern regions of Kharkiv, Donetsk and Luhansk are seeing the worst of the fighting after Russian forces withdrew from around Kyiv.

* An International Committee of the Red Cross team has led a convoy of buses and private cars carrying more than 1,000 people to Zaporizhzhia after they fled the besieged southern port of Mariupol on their own.

* A total of 4,892 people were evacuated from Ukrainian cities through humanitarian corridors, more than the 3,846 who escaped on Tuesday, a senior Ukrainian official said. Ukraine hopes to open 10 such corridors. 

* Ukrainian authorities cannot help people evacuate from the eastern front-line town of Izyum or send humanitarian aid because it is completely under Russian control, the Kharkiv regional governor said.


BUCHA DEATHS

* Civilians killings in the Ukrainian town of Bucha were "very probably war crimes", French President Macron said in an interview. 

* Russia's foreign ministry said that images of bodies strewn across Bucha were staged to justify more sanctions and derail peace talks.

* Reuters reporters have seen the remains of at least five victims in Bucha who were shot through the head. 


DIPLOMACY, ECONOMY

* The U.N. General Assembly will vote on Thursday on suspending Russia from the U.N. Human Rights Council. 

* The United States wants Russia expelled from the G20 and will boycott a number of meetings of the major economies forum in Indonesia if Russian officials show up. 

* Austria expelled four Russian diplomats. 

* The United States announced sanctions on President Vladimir Putin's two adult daughters and Russia's Sberbank and a ban on Americans investing in Russia.

* European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen said there were more EU sanctions to come. The EU was looking into oil and revenues Russia gets from fossil fuels, she said. 

QUOTES

* "We have information that the Russian military has changed its tactics and is trying to remove people who have been killed from streets and basements ... this is just an attempt to hide the evidence and nothing more," Zelenskiy said, but did not provide evidence.

* "Sanctions against Russia must be ruinous enough for us to end this terrible war," said the head of Ukraine's presidential office, Andriy Yermak, urging its allies to go further.




READ MORE: Latest development on Ukraine-Russia crisis