Ukraine reports heavy shelling
Luhansk governor: Kremlin pools forces for attack
4/9/2022 8:33 am
There are increasing signs of an imminent Russian offensive in the Donbass. According to Ukrainian information, Moscow’s units are increasing the shelling of the region. The governor of Luhansk calls on civilians to flee.
The attacks by Russian units in the Donbass in eastern Ukraine are continuing, according to Ukrainian sources. Russian troops are focused on taking over the towns of Rubishne, Nizhne, Popasna and Novobachmutivka and gaining full control of the city of Mariupol, Unian agency reported, citing the military situation report of the Ukrainian General Staff in the morning.
The governor of Luhansk, Serhiy Hajday, told the Internet newspaper “Ukrainska Pravda” on Friday that the situation in the Luhansk region was most difficult in the cities of Rubishne and Popasna. Part of the town of Rubischne, which has a population of 50,000, has been taken by Russian units, there are constant battles for position and increased shelling. Popasna, with around 20,000 residents, has also been “pressed down” for more than a month, Hajdaj said. It is impossible to evacuate people from there because “everything is being bombed left and right there”.
Speaking on public television, Hajday said the Russians were “joining forces for an offensive and we’re seeing the number of shell hits increase.” More settlements would have to be evacuated and civilians brought to safety. 30 percent of the inhabitants are still in the towns of the region. They are asked to leave the area. The information could not be independently verified.
The military experts of the US war research institute Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said on the night of Mariupol that the Ukrainian armed forces continued to hold defensive positions in the east and south-west of the besieged port city, especially at the Asovstal steelworks and in the port area.
According to Unian, the report by the Ukrainian General Staff said the country’s armed forces were able to repel seven attacks by Russian units on Friday. Attacks were also repelled around the city of Izyum in the Kharkiv region, which was occupied by Russian troops. In the south, targets in the Odessa region were again hit with rockets from the territory of Crimea, which was annexed by Russia.