Russia, Ukraine to exchange prisoners this weekend

Russia and Ukraine said on Wednesday that the two sides would implement another prisoner swap this weekend.

Russian President Vladimir Putin held a video conference meeting with government members on Wednesday. Presidential Aide Vladimir Medinsky reported the results of the latest round of direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on Monday.

Medinsky, also head of the Russian Delegation at the talks, said that Russia is fully prepared for an equal prisoner-of-war exchange on June 7-9, with approximately 1,200 people from either side, which will be the biggest prisoner of war (POW) swap on record.

The Russian Delegation unilaterally proposed to transfer to Kiev over 6,000 bodies of Ukrainian troops, said Medinsky, noting that the two sides have established an effective communication channel on humanitarian issues.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced Wednesday that Ukraine and Russia have agreed to carry out a prisoner exchange under the "500-for-500" formula this weekend, the Ukrinform news agency reported.

"The Russian side has informed us that this weekend it will be ready to hand over 500 individuals ... Accordingly, we will be ready to exchange the same number of people," Zelensky said after consultations between Kiev and Moscow regarding the swap.

Russia and Ukraine agreed on another major prisoner exchange during the second round of direct talks in Istanbul on Monday.

They agreed on an equal prisoner of war exchange, at least 1,000 people from either side, primarily from among those wounded, severely ill and below the age of 25.

Russia, Ukraine to exchange prisoners this weekend

The death toll from a landfill collapse in the central Philippine city of Cebu has risen to eight by Monday morning as search and rescue operations continued for another 28 missing people.

The landfill collapse occurred on Thursday as dozens of sanitation workers were working at the site. The disaster has already caused injuries of 18 people.

Family members of the missing people said the rescue progress is slow, and the hope for the survival of their loved ones is fading.

"For me, maybe I’ve accepted the worst result already because the garbage is poisonous and yesterday, it was raining very hard the whole day. Maybe they’ve been poisoned. For us, alive or dead, I hope we can get their bodies out of the garbage rubble," said Maria Kareen Rubin, a family member of a victim.

Families have set up camps on high ground near the landfill, awaiting news of their relatives. Some people at the site said cries for help could still be heard hours after the landfill collapsed, but these voices gradually faded away.

Bienvenido Ranido, who lost his wife in the disaster, said he can't believe all that happened.

"After they gave my wife oxygen, my kids and I were expecting that she would be saved that night because she was still alive. But the night came and till the next morning, they didn't manage to save her," he said.

Death toll in central Philippine landfill collapse rises to eight