Historic Ukrainian push – Four dead in Kramatorsk – Violence and crime –

2023-06-28 04:05:00

28.06.2023 04:05

(Akt. 28.06.2023 04:10)

A destroyed Russian tank in the Donetsk region ©APA/AFP

The Ukrainian counter-offensive has advanced into territory occupied by Russian troops since 2014. That emerges from the British secret service report on the war in Ukraine on Tuesday. According to them, members of the Ukrainian Air Force made small advances to the east of the village of Krasnohorivka near the city of Donetsk. Meanwhile, at least four people died in a Russian rocket attack on the center of the city of Kramatorsk in the evening.

The Russian army shelled Kramatorsk twice on Tuesday evening, hitting a restaurant among other things, Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on Telegram. Several houses were damaged next to the restaurant. A child was also among the injured, along with Ukrainian writer Victoria Amelina and Colombian author Hector Abad. Rescue workers searched under the rubble for possible victims. At least 47 injured were counted. “This is the city center. These were public restaurants populated by civilians,” said Donesk Region Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko.

“Recent multiple and simultaneous Ukrainian attacks” across Donbass have overwhelmed forces of the internationally unrecognized Donetsk People’s Republic and Chechen units operating there, the British report said.

Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maljar said on Tuesday that the army also used the Wagner uprising to launch attacks. Maljar reported attacks near the eastern town of Bakhmut, which had been occupied by the invaders after months of bitter fighting. “The attacks on the Bakhmut section are now in their fourth day,” she wrote on Telegram on Tuesday. Progress was being made “along the flanks” every day. According to Bakhmut himself, however, the Ukrainian units have not yet advanced. The Russian soldiers there would now use the fortifications previously built by the Ukrainians. “Therefore, liberating these areas will require greater effort and patience,” Maljar said.

The city, located in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk, was largely conquered by the Russian mercenary troop Wagner, who at the time were still fighting alongside the regular Russian army. A little later, a long-simmering power struggle between Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin and the Russian military leadership around Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu escalated, culminating in a spectacular advance of mercenary troops to Moscow at the weekend.

According to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian counter-offensive is successful. “Today our soldiers are advancing in all directions, it’s a happy day,” he said in his daily video address on Monday evening. He wishes the soldiers more days like this. Before his speech, which he gave on a train, Zelenskyj had visited several front sectors.

It was a busy and emotional day, said the President. He visited both the Bakhmut area and the south of the country in Zaporizhia and handed out several awards, including two gold stars for Heroes of Ukraine – the country’s highest award. In view of the recent successes, Selenskyj was convinced of the victory against the Russian occupiers. The leadership in Kiev reported on Monday that another town in the Zaporizhia region had been recaptured. “All our earth will be free – absolutely everything,” said the head of state.