AIn view of new attacks, a nationwide air alert was triggered in Ukraine on Friday evening. According to the authorities, several people died in the south-eastern region of Dnipro. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on citizens to be vigilant. At the same time, he warned Moscow that the war, which had been going on for almost five months, would not remain without consequences in Russia either.
The death of a Briton held captive by pro-Russian separatists has caused horror in London. Foreign Minister Liz Truss announced that Russia must “take full responsibility for this”. In Moscow, Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin is now reassigning key positions in his leadership. SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich does not see Germany as a “leading power” in international politics in the future either.
Zelenskyi: Russia’s society ‘crippled’ for generations
Zelenskyj also sees Russian society as having been damaged for decades by the war against his country. Ukraine will preserve “humanity and civilization,” he said in his video speech on Saturday night. Destroyed educational institutions would be rebuilt, he promised. “But Russian society, with so many murderers and executioners, will remain crippled for generations – and it’s their own fault.” In view of new attacks on several regions in the evening, Zelenskyy once again appealed to his compatriots not to ignore the air raid alarm.
Air alert across the country
Sirens wailed across Ukraine on Friday evening. Videos and photos circulated on social networks that are said to show flying rockets and clouds of smoke in the southeastern city of Dnipro. The governor of the central Ukrainian region of Poltava, Dmytro Lunin, confirmed explosions in Kremenchuk. Another missile was launched over southern Ukrainian territory, according to Odessa military governor Maxym Marchenko. Details of possible victims and destruction were not yet known.
Kyiv confirms receipt of new M270 rocket launcher system
According to Ukraine, it has received a new rocket launcher system from the West. “No mercy for the enemy,” Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov wrote on Twitter. The M270 systems would keep the US Himars “good company on the battlefield”. Whether only one or more of the M270 systems were delivered was not clear from the tweet. Great Britain recently promised Ukraine such weapons. The tracked M270 systems can load twelve missiles instead of six, unlike the truck-mounted Himars.
Brite dies in separatist captivity in eastern Ukraine
A Briton has died as a prisoner of war by pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. This was announced by a representative of the separatists, Darya Morozova. A medical examination of the man after his arrest several weeks ago revealed a number of chronic diseases such as diabetes, lung and kidney weakness and several cardiovascular problems, said Morosowa. He died on July 10th. The exact circumstances of death could not be independently verified. The British government then summoned the Russian ambassador.