Status: 03/26/2022 17:30
Lviv in western Ukraine has so far been largely spared from Russian attacks. Now authorities are reporting a rocket fire, black smoke is rising over the city. Russian troops seized a small town near Chernobyl.
According to the mayor, the West Ukrainian metropolis of Lviv was attacked from the air. Three heavy explosions were heard, according to a member of the city council. Reuters eyewitnesses saw black smoke billowing over the city.
The mayor of Lviv, Andriy Sadowy, called on the people to calm down on Telegram. People should stay in shelters. The city, about 80 kilometers from the border with NATO Poland, has so far only survived a few attacks. At least 200,000 refugees from other parts of Ukraine went to Lviv.
The city near Chernobyl in Russian hands
The fighting is also reported from other parts of the country: According to Ukrainian information, Russian troops have seized the town of Slavutych near the former Chernobyl nuclear power plant. The soldiers entered the city and took the hospital, wrote the head of the military administration, Oleksandr Pawluk, on Telegram. This information cannot be independently verified. There are workers in Sławutycz who used to operate the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and are now overseeing the decommissioned power plants.
Residents reportedly protested against the Russian occupation and unfurled a large Ukrainian flag. According to this information, Russian soldiers fired into the air to disperse people. The exclusion zone around Chernobyl has been occupied by Russian troops since the beginning of the war.
Demonstrators in Sławutycz. Photo: via REUTERS
conflicting parties as a source
In the current situation, information on the course of the war, shellings and casualties provided by the official organs of the Russian and Ukrainian parties to the conflict cannot be directly checked by an independent body.
The situation in Mariupol “absolutely tragic”
According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, the situation in the port city of Mariupol in southern Ukraine remains “completely tragic”. That evening, in a video, he accused Russia of blocking aid to the civilian population in Mariupol. So far, just over 26,000 civilians have been evacuated from the highly endangered city.
According to Ukrainian authorities, civilians who wish to leave Mariupol must now do so in private vehicles as Russian forces do not allow buses to their checkpoints around the port city.
White shaded: the advance of the Russian army. Shaded green: Russia backed separatist areas. Crimea: annexed by Russia. Photo: ISW / 03/25/2022
France wants to help in Mariupol
Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Wierieszczuk said on national television that over 100,000 people still need to be evacuated from Mariupol. French President Emmanuel Macron wants to help. Along with Turkey and Greece, France wants to remove the civilian population from the city. When planning an international rescue operation, there are already concrete talks with the mayor and coordination with President Selenskiy, Macron said. Now an agreement is also needed with Russia, whose troops have been besieging the city for weeks.
Hard fight for the city of Kherson
According to a US Department of Defense official, Ukrainian forces are struggling to take away the important southern city of Kherson from the Russians. The Russian military no longer has as tight control of the city as before, which is why Kherson is now reclassified as a “contested area”.
Kherson is a strategically important port city, an official said. It is situated at the beginning of the Dnieper estuary delta. If the Ukrainians managed to retake the city, it would complicate the Russian attack on the nearby Nikolayev, engulfed in fighting. It would also significantly hinder a possible land offensive towards the port city of Odessa.
Russian troops are taking place near Chernobyl – people are protesting
Sabine Krebs, ARD Warsaw, daily news at 5:00 PM on March 26, 2022