Nearly four million people from the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, and the southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, were asked to attend polling stations and vote in so-called referendums on joining Russia. A former Ukrainian prime minister tells Newshour the referendums are null and void.

Also in the programme: Mystery leaks in the Nord Stream gas pipelines spark warnings in Europe; and we take a look at how Iran’s crackdown on protests at the death of a young woman is also further weakening the country’s economy.

(Photo: A woman holds her ballot during voting in a so-called 'referendum' on the joining of Russian-controlled regions of Ukraine to Russia. Credit: EPA).