Kat Lonsdorf

Jealousy. Power struggles. Political infighting. This week's shake-up of Putin's top commanders in charge of Russia's invasion in Ukraine have it all, according to some security experts.

The attacks came only hours after Russia blamed Ukraine for a weekend explosion that partially damaged a strategic bridge that connects Russian-occupied Crimea to mainland Russia.

Villagers on the Ukrainian side say it's already hard to stay in touch with friends and family across the front lines. They fear it will get worse.

The so-called referendums — which Ukraine, the U.S. and others have denounced as shams — are widely viewed as an initial Kremlin move toward formal Russian annexation of the territories.

Ukrainians are fleeing from Russian-held areas to avoid the sham referendums, which could pave the way for annexation. "It was all staged," said one Ukrainian. "How can you vote when they have guns?"

On the outskirts of the recently liberated town of Izium, investigators have found what Ukrainian officials are calling a mass grave. It is now being inspected for possible evidence of war crimes.

Europe's largest nuclear plant will remain shut down until Russian forces leave, the head of Ukraine's atomic energy agency tells NPR. Under Russian occupation, he says, "staff cannot operate freely."

Vitaliy is a 22-year-old Ukrainian college student living in occupied Kherson. He had been sending NPR voice memos for months describing life in the city. Then he decided to leave.

Bill Ochs, the project manager for the James Webb telescope shares the trials and tribulations of the launch and what it's like having the images out in the world.

The Supreme Court's ruling that curbs the power of the EPA will slow its ability to respond to the climate crisis, but "does not take the EPA out of the game," according to its administrator.