7:17 a.m .: Start of annexation “referendums” by Russia in areas controlled by pro-Russians
Russian annexation “referendums” began on Friday in areas of Ukraine wholly or partly controlled by Moscow, Russian news agencies reported, with polls described as “sham” by kyiv and the West.
These votes, which began at 05:00 GMT, are to be held until September 27 in the pro-Russian separatist regions of Donetsk and Lugansk (east), and in areas under Russian occupation in the regions of Kherson and Zaporozhye (south), in Moscow’s full military offensive against Ukraine.