Russian doctors have called on Vladimir Putin to “immediately” release artist Alexandra Skotchilenko, who was sentenced to seven years in prison on Thursday. Ukraine announced the deaths of two rescue workers in a two-stage Russian bomb attack in the southeastern region of Zaporizhia. The highlights of the last 24 hours.
Russian doctors call Putin. More than a hundred Russian doctors on Saturday called on President Vladimir Putin to “immediately” release from prison artist Alexandra Skotchilenko, who her supporters say is suffering from health problems. The artist was sentenced to seven years in prison on Thursday by a court in Saint Petersburg, northwest Russia, for replacing price tags in a supermarket with messages denouncing the attack in Ukraine in March 2022. In a letter signed by 112 doctors and consulted by AFP, they say they denounce the “obvious injustice” of the conviction of Alexandra Skotchilenko.
Rescue workers killed. Ukraine announced on Saturday the deaths of two rescuers in a two-stage Russian bombardment in the southeastern Zaporizhia region, a rare example of the technique sometimes used in conflicts. In Komychouvaka, “the first two shots injured four residents of the area and a residential building caught fire,” Ukrainian police said in a statement. “When police and rescuers arrived at the scene, the terrorist country’s military fired again,” the police statement said. “Two employees of the state rescue service were killed and three other colleagues were injured to varying degrees.”
Night drone attack. Ukraine reported a spike in nighttime drone strikes by Russia on Saturday, accusing the country of firing 38 on its territory, the highest number in more than six weeks. The Ukrainian air force said it shot down 29 of 38 Iranian-made Shahed drones – also called “kamikaze drones” because they were loaded with explosives designed to explode if they hit their target – fired by Russia.
Continuation of the Battle of the Dnieper. After months of counteroffensive, Ukraine claims success against the Russians on the Dnieper. While Kiev admits that fighting there is “violent” and is still ongoing, it claims to have captured positions on the occupied riverbank. This is Ukraine’s first success since the recapture of the village of Robotyné in the southern Zaporizhzhia region in August.
A. LG with AFP