Two rockets devastate a public transport depot in a residential area of Kharkiv
It was a nightmare for 24 hours in the Kharkiv region. back in the sights of the Russian army, where one of the fiercest battles of recent months is being fought: that of Kupiansk. Seven ballistic missiles fired from across the Russian border and running along one side of the entire area hit several corners of the territory. The distance between the starting point and the destination is about fifty kilometers: too short to intercept the devices and trigger alarms. This is what happened last night in the city of Kharkiv, the country's second largest metropolis after Kiev.
The first of the two missiles hit the target before the sirens went off at 1:30 a.m. And has A bus and tram depot was destroyed in the Salivka district, the most heavily bombed residential area since the start of the war because it looks out over the border, where more than half of the condominiums were damaged by the rain of fire that continues to fall. The second hit hit a residential building without causing any injuries. “It was the worst night in the last six months,” says Saltivka resident Alina Bondareva. According to the regional police spokesman, “We are facing two huge craters with a diameter of about 9 meters and a depth of 3.5 meters.” There are damaged vehicles and houses. Based on the wreckage, it was determined that it was S-300.”
Two rockets devastate a public transport depot in a residential area of Kharkiv – Portal
The situation is much more complex Kupiansk district, where the Russian army has intensified its offensive to capture the city at the intersection of Kharkiv, Donetsk and Lugansk regions, where Ukrainian forces repelled nine land incursions in the last day. Two rockets hit a village at 1 a.m.; by three more; at eleven a.m. a 55-year-old woman was injured in another raid; Two more air strikes within a few minutes of each other on other settlements in the area. Due to the bombing, the area remained without electricity. “There are about 240 people there,” says Oleg Sinegubov, head of the regional administration. Electric company technicians continue to restore power, but come under enemy fire. Around 9,600 people live in the most vulnerable communities in Kupiank District. We continue the evacuation. With the help of the regional coordination center, around 15 people leave the most vulnerable areas every day.”
Difficult day also in Kherson, in the south of Ukraine. Russian attacks injured 16 people, Federal regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin added that three children aged 2, 4 and 9 were injured in the drone strike. Russia has attacked the region 82 times, using artillery, mortars, drones, aircraft, tanks and multiple rocket systems. The city of Kherson was bombed 36 times, said Prokudin.
Then the anti-aircraft defense 18 of the 19 kamikaze drones fired by the Russians on Ukrainian territory were shot down in the Odessa, Kherson, Dnipropetrovsk, Vinnytsia, Khmelnytskyi, Kiev, Chernihiv and Kirovohrad regions, according to the Air Force. Kiev reports that the drones were launched from Chauda on the Kerch Peninsula and from Balaklava in Crimea.
On the political front Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced that “there are no prerequisites for negotiations as Ukraine left the negotiating table at the insistence of the United Kingdom.” And he calls as “absurd” Kiev's 10-point peace plan, which calls for the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territories occupied in the invasion that began in February 2022, about 20% of the country. Then comes the complaint from the humanitarian human rights organization Human Rights Watch: “Russian authorities are openly and illegally forcing men in occupied territories of Ukraine to fight against their country.” In fact, Ukrainian civilians and even prisoners are being forcibly recruited. “This constitutes a war crime,” added Hugh Williamson, director for Europe and Central Asia.