The day's dominant story was the Russian military's capture of Konstantinovka, the last major Ukrainian stronghold in Donbass, with state-aligned outlets framing it as a decisive victory. Putin announced the planned creation of a security zone in Kharkiv and Sumy regions, and the full liberation of LNR was declared. Earlier, editors focused on a wave of Ukrainian attacks on Russian border regions: a missile strike killed a woman in Belgorod, a drone attack killed one in Bryansk, and a market strike in Tokmak left five dead. The fuel crisis continued to deepen, with VTsIOM reporting Putin's approval rating at an 8-year low, and the government cutting diesel exchange sales quotas to 10%. Other stories included the arrest of former Rosaviatsiya head Neralko on fraud charges, and the death of Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei, with Medvedev attending the funeral.