The Russian army said on Thursday that it had “improved its positions” in northeastern Ukraine, an area where it has been on the offensive for several weeks and from where the Russian occupation had been driven out a year ago by Ukrainian forces. “In the direction of Kupyansk, the assault units of the ‘Western’ combat groups during offensive actions improved their positions in the front line,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in its daily report.
The main information:
– The Russian army claims to “improve its positions” in the northeast of Ukraine
– kyiv recognizes a “difficult” situation in the northeast where Russian troops are on the offensive
– Localities of the Kharkiv region order the evacuation of their inhabitants
– At least one dead and five injured after a Russian strike on Zaporizhya
– Yandex co-founder criticizes “barbaric” offensive in Ukraine
At least one dead and 14 injured after Russian strike on Zaporizhia
At least one person was killed and 14 injured Thursday after a Russian strike on a civilian building in the city of Zaporizhia, in southern Ukraine, already targeted the day before, Ukrainian authorities announced. “A fire broke out in a civilian building after the occupants hit it with a missile. At present, we deplore the death of one person,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Telegram. According to the head of the city’s military administration, Anatoly Kourtiev, the strike also injured 14 people.
kyiv evokes a “difficult” situation in the northeast
The Ukrainian army reported on Thursday a “difficult” situation in the Kupyansk sector, in northeastern Ukraine, where an offensive by Russian troops prompted the authorities to evacuate civilians. “The situation remains difficult, but under control,” Serguiy Tcherevaty, army spokesman for the eastern sector of the front, said on Telegram, using a common formulation used by Kiev during attacks by its opponent. “The Russians are trying to impose themselves and break through our defence,” he added.
Evacuations in northeastern Ukraine in the face of Russian advance
Several dozen localities in the Kharkiv region, in northeastern Ukraine, ordered the evacuation of their inhabitants on Thursday in the face of the advance of the Russian army. Faced with this progress, a decree signed by the local authorities ordered the evacuation of 37 localities in the district of Kupyansk, an important communication node. These are mainly villages located near the front, on the left bank of the Oskil River.
The administration of Kupiansk, a city of around 25,000 inhabitants before the war, recommended in the morning that its inhabitants evacuate in the direction of Kharkiv, the regional capital, in particular, because of “the difficult security situation and the ‘increase in the number of bombings’.
One dead in Ukrainian bombing in Russian region bordering Ukraine
One person was killed and two others injured Thursday by a Ukrainian bombardment in the Russian region of Bryansk, bordering Ukraine, announced its governor, Alexander Bogomaz. “Ukrainian armed forces shelled the village of Chaoussy (…) Unfortunately, as a result of the shelling, one man died, two residents were injured,” said Alexandre Bogomaz on Telegram.
Russia says it shot down 13 Ukrainian drones near Crimea and Moscow
The Russian Defense Ministry claimed early Thursday that it shot down 13 drones, including 11 near Crimea and two heading towards Moscow, after several similar attacks in recent days. “Two drones flying towards the city of Moscow were destroyed,” Russian Defense said on Telegram.
One of the missiles targeting the Russian capital was shot down by Russian air defenses in the Kaluga region, southwest of the Russian capital, the second in the Odintsovsky district of the Moscow region, the ministry reported. , which accuses Kiev of having launched these devices.
“Near the city of Sevastopol (in Crimea, editor’s note), two drones were hit by anti-aircraft defense devices in service, nine others were neutralized by electronic warfare means and crashed into the Black Sea before dying. ‘hit the target’, according to the same source.
No casualties or damage were reported, the ministry said. Ukrainian drone attacks have multiplied in recent weeks on Russian territory, often targeting Moscow and the annexed Crimean peninsula.
Yandex co-founder criticizes “barbaric” offensive in Ukraine
The co-founder of Russian tech gem Yandex, Arkadi Voloj, spoke out on Thursday against the “barbaric” offensive in Ukraine, a rare stance among Russian businessmen in a context of unprecedented repression.
“Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is barbaric and I oppose it categorically. I am horrified by the plight of the people of Ukraine, many of whom are friends and relatives, and whose homes are being bombed every every day,” said Arkadi Voloj in a statement sent to AFP. “I am against war,” he adds.
In June 2022, more than three months after the start of the offensive against Ukraine, the entrepreneur had resigned from the management of Yandex, a search engine he had co-founded in 1997 and which has become an essential news giant. technology in Russia.
In its statement, Arkadi Voloj, who has lived in Israel since the 2010s and presents himself on his website as an “Israeli entrepreneur born in Kazakhstan”, claims to have spent the last 18 months “supporting the talented Russian engineers who have decided to leave the country” so that they can “start a new life”. “It required concentration, attention and discretion (…) There were reasons to remain silent during this long process”, he continues.