Russian invasion of Ukraine: tanks and rocket attacks on the cities. Breaking news
Early in the morning of February 24, 2022, Russia launched missile strikes on the territory of Ukraine and launched a direct full-scale invasion. Ukraine repulses the enemy. As of April 28, 2022, more than 22800 russian servicemen, thousands of units of military equipment (187 planes, 155 helicopters, 970 tanks, 2389 armored vehicles, 1688 machines, 582 artillery / rocket artillery systems, 8 ships and more) have been eliminated.
Police show photo of occupier who raped woman in Kyiv region. He has been declared a suspect. He is wanted.
The woman and her child are now safe and their lives and health are not threatened, law enforcers say.
The 28th day of a full-scale war in Ukraine. Situation in the regions:
Kyiv region
Several alarms across the region took place overnight.
Fighting along the Zhytomyr highway.
The AFU has improved positions in Irpin and Moshchun. The enemy is entrenched and trying to regroup.
At night the enemy shelled the village of Yasnogorodka from Grads. Information on casualties is being clarified.
Chernihiv region
Chernihiv is being defended. Overnight - 2 air raids on the city, bombed the city.
A bridge over the Desna river was bombed, along which evacuation flights and humanitarian aid were moving.
Sumy region
Fires in Trostyanets municipality because of the fighting, rescuers can get through.
Zhytomyr region
Several alarms took place in the evening and at night. No missile strikes have been recorded.
Kirovograd region
Seven air-raid alarms a day.
Dnipropetrovsk region
The day before, missile strikes destroyed a railway station in Pavlograd. One man was killed.
Kharkiv region
Residential areas and the historic centre of Kharkiv were attacked overnight.
The AFU repelled an attempted attack by Russians with K-52 attack helicopters.
The occupiers try to take Izyum, the Ukrainian army does not lose its position and rejects the attacks.
Russian missiles shelled Lozova. At least eight wounded, 20 houses damaged or
destroyed.
Zaporizhzhya region
There were several air raids overnight. There were no explosions.
Volyn
No air-raid alarms or explosions.
Vinnitsa
No alarms.
Zakarpattya
Night without alarms.
Khmelnitsky region
No worries.
Ternopil
No alarm.
Cherkasy
No alarms.
Lvivska
No alarms.
Poltava
Air raid in the morning
Rivne region
Situation is relatively quiet at night.
Chernivtsi
No alarms.
Ivano-Frankivsk region
No alarms.
Luhansk
Enemy shelling continues almost continuously.
An enterprise and an educational institution are on fire in Rubizhne.
In Lysychansk, fuel remains at an oil refinery.
As a result of shelling of residential areas in Rubizhne, there are 3 dead, including 2 children.
Donetsk
Significant activation on Avdiivka and Marinka.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces are holding their ground. Avdiivka: shelling all night long along the line around the city. Part of the city is without electricity.
There is no information about casualties at this time.
Volnovakha is temporarily occupied. Mariupol is under blockade.
Air and rocket artillery strikes have been joined by naval, ship and plant attacks.
Mykolayiv region
Mykolayiv was shelled overnight. Information on the destruction is being clarified.
There were also alarms on a number of other territories in the region. In the morning the situation is stable.
Kherson region
In the region there is a problem with the provision of food, medicines, gasoline.
The RMA also continues to receive reports of territory replacement.
Odesa region
One evening alert, overnight calm.
Photo of this morning's shelling of Kyiv. Source: KCSA deputy head Mykola Povoroznyk.
How Russian ammunition is burning and dispersed in Luhansk Region was revealed by the AFU General Staff.
"Here and small arms ammunition, here and artillery shells and much more," the report says.
It has been burning for more than two hours, which means there is more to burn, the General Staff added.
Night battle in Sumy Region and near Trostyanets. There was a fire there all night long because of enemy shelling, said Dmytro Zhyvytskyy, head of the regional state administration.
As a result of the hostilities, one of the enterprises caught fire last night, but the State Emergencies Service officers are unable to start extinguishing the fire because of the shelling.
Read more about this morning's shelling in Kyiv, KCSA writes:
- Buildings in Svyatoshinskyy and Shevchenkovskyy districts damaged
- Shelled a shopping centre, private sector houses and multi-storey buildings. No casualties.
- In Shevchenkivskyy district several private houses and a multi-storey building are on fire. Four people are injured. Information on casualties and the nature of the damage is being clarified.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said there can be no immediate energy boycott from Russia.
He said the sanctions already imposed against Russia have had a big impact, but there is a risk that tougher measures could have serious consequences for Europe's economy, DW wrote, citing dpa.
Russians destroyed dozens of tonnes of food stored in warehouses in Brovary district of Kyiv region, VDA Group managing partner Yevhen Kolomiyets has said.
Vegetable and meat warehouses were burnt, the damage amounted to more than 600m hryvnyas.
The warehouses, he said, stood in an open field with no buildings in their vicinity.
Kyiv metro operation on 23 March (from 08:00 to 19:00, as a shelter around the clock):
Red line from "Shulyavska" station to "Universitet" station
Blue line from "Heroyiv Dnipra" metro station to "Teremki" metro station
There are no stops at the stations:
- "Maidan Nezalezhnosti".
- "Ploshcha Lva Tolstogo".
Green line from "Syrets" station to "Vydubychi" station.
No stops at stations:
- "Zoloti Vorota".
- "Palats Sportu"
- "Klovska".
The "Slavutych"-"Chervonyy Khutir" subdivision also operates.
The approximate interval of movement is 40 minutes.
The timetable can be changed as needed.
In Kyiv, there are reports of occupiers shelling a neighbourhood this morning.
Military medic Kateryna Stupnytska, who died on 10 March, has been posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine - Defence Ministry.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces have destroyed the commander of a brigade of Russian marines who wanted to storm Odesa, a representative of the Odesa military administration, Serhiy Bratchuk, has said.
"The commander of the Russian Marine brigade was destroyed by our military. And this will be the case with anyone who tries to rape Ukrainian women. Who tries to kill our children. And there is no forgiveness," Bratchuk said.
Five things to know about this war, said Deputy Defence Minister Ganna Maliar:
- This war is a sure loser for Russia no matter how long it lasts.
- Ukraine was ready for this war exactly as much as its capabilities allowed.
- This war is the historic mission of Ukrainians to defeat the eternal enemy and finally put an end to Russian imperial ambitions.
- The AFU has 261,000 servicemen, of whom the military has 215,000. They defend 1,800km of frontline and 42 million people. In wartime they are joined by mobilised persons. Military occupations are taught for 5 to 15 days.
- This war will last for some time. The larger the objective, the more effort and time it will take to achieve it.
In Chernihiv, the Russian military have bombed a road bridge over Desna river connected the city with Kyiv, they have evacuated people, Suspilne writes, citing the head of the Chernihiv RMA, Vyacheslav Chaus.
Izyum district - air-raid alert has been cancelled.
Two children were killed in Rubizhne after Russians attacked a residential block of flats, Serhii Gaidai said.
The shell exploded on the fifth floor. Rescuers found three dead, two of them children.
Kyiv- air-raid alert has been cancelled.
The West is restricting Russia's access to weather data, which some fear could help plan attacks in Ukraine, Reuters has said.
For example, the European satellite meteorology organization EUMETSAT stops sharing meteorological data with Russia.
Russian occupiers will try to crack down harder on Ukrainian protests - British intelligence
There are air raid alerts in Odesa, Mykolayiv, Ochakiv and Voznesensk.
In Kharkiv, 246 babies were born in a month - 122 boys and 124 girls, and two twins, the Health Department said.
The occupiers stole and destroyed a unique laboratory in Chornobyl worth 6 million euros, the State Agency for Exclusion Zone Management said.
The laboratory was a unique complex with strong analytical capabilities and could provide services at any stage of radioactive waste management, from conditioning to disposal, as well as the research and technology development stage.
The laboratory had a strategic role in handling radioactive waste samples, helping to analyse them and ensure nuclear and radiation safety.
A summary report from the AFU General Staff on the morning of 23 March.
- The defence forces continue to conduct a defence operation in the Eastern, Southern, and Northeastern directions.
- In the Eastern direction the operational groups of troops are operating in the Donetsk, Slobozhansk, and Eastern part of the Tavriya operational districts. They are not giving the enemy an opportunity to renew their offence in the directions of Slov'yansk and, part of the forces, on the Lozova locality. They are restraining the advances of the enemy in the direction of Zaporizhya.
- The combined forces are holding back the invader in the direction of the cities of Popasna and Kurakhove. They are also carrying out the circular defence of Mariupol.
- In the North-Eastern direction, the defence operation continues in a designated operational zone. The main efforts are focused on covering the state border, holding back the enemy's offence in the area os Malyn.
- In the Siversky region, a group of troops holds the defence of Chernihiv and holds back the advancement of the enemy in the direction of Kyiv.
- In the South-East direction a defence operation is being carried out, as well as the support of troops' ground operations and individual units, and the defence of bases and seaports in the Black Sea operational zone. The defence of the city of Mykolayiv and Mykolayiv region continues.
- Our defenders are holding back the enemy in the direction of Kryviy Rih and Novovorontsovska, conducting a stabilising operation, and carrying out territorial defence tasks.
- There is a note of the enemy's aviation carrying out active tasks, as well as missile strikes, over the past 24 hours.
- The Air Force and Armed Forces of Ukraine are repulsing concentrated missile and air strikes of the enemy, covering important objects in Ukraine from the air, and grouping troops. Over the past 24 hours over 17 of the enemy's air targets have been hit (6 aircrafts, 5 UAVs, 1 helicopter and 5 cruise missiles). Additionally, the aviation of the Air Forces have made devastating blows to the accumulation of equipment and manpower of the enemy, and have damaged the enemy's cruise missiles.
- On the territory of the russian federation, covert mobilisation continues, with the aim of replenishing the personnel losses in the occupying group of troops operating on the territory of Ukraine.
Military commissariats are making efforts to attract former servicemen to serve and sign the relevant contracts of former servicemen, and preference is given to those with combat experience.
- On the territory of belarus the representatives of the opposition forces and concerned citizens who condemn the assistance of the current illegitimate government of the russian federation in the war with Ukraine, have partially disrupted the railway connection between republic of belarus and Ukraine. Information to be confirmed.
- In certain areas, the enemy has been demoralised.
Additional evacuation trips for 23 March - Ukrzaliznytsia
Kyiv, Darnytsya station:
- 08:00 - Intercity+ Kyiv - Lviv;
- 17:00 - Intercity+ Kyiv - Lviv.
Kharkiv:
- 08:00 - Intercity+ Kharkiv - Lviv,
- 11:30 - №209/210 Kharkiv - Ivano-Frankivsk,
- 15:00 - Intercity+ Kharkiv - Lviv.
Dnipro:
- 20:00 - №234/233 Dnipro - Chop.
Kramatorsk:
- 13:00 - #279/278 Kramatorsk - Lviv;
- 16:00 - №285/284 Kramatorsk - Lviv.
An additional flight from Odesa to Uzhgorod will depart at 22:32.
The list of scheduled trips is here.
Kyiv - air-raid alert. Everyone head for the bomb shelter!
Izyum district - air-raid alert.
A candle-lit inscription "CHILDREN" was illuminated on the site opposite the National Theatre in Prague. It is a reference to the Mariupol Drama Theatre bombed by the occupants.
According to the organizers, the action should send two messages: support for Mariupol residents and an appeal to Czech political leaders to save Mariupol.
The Prosecutor-General's Office for the first time suspected a Russian serviceman of raping a woman.
In Kyiv region, occupiers killed a man and abused his wife, threatening her and her young child, Iryna Venediktova said.
The identity of the Russian man has been established.
"A Russian serviceman has been notified on suspicion of violating the laws and customs of war. He has been put on the wanted list and an application for detention has been filed with the court," Venediktova wrote.
Kharkiv and the region- air-raid alert has been cancelled
How to counteract Russian throw-ins. The instruction was published by the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy using a case study from the page of the head of the State Tax Service of Ukraine.
The most important thing that happened overnight:
- The US and Western allies are considering options to exclude Russia from the G20, a group of the world's largest economies.
- The president's office wants China to become one of Ukraine's security guarantors.
- France has drawn up a housing preparation plan to accommodate 100,000 Ukrainian refugees.
- Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew will come to Poland at the end of March to support Ukrainians opposing a full-scale Russian invasion.
- The Ukrainian Armed Forces have destroyed a Russian invaders' combat kit in Luhansk Region, where they stored ammunition for artillery, small arms and other weapons.
- Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said at a briefing that the USA was aware of Russia's use of hypersonic missiles in Ukraine "in at least one case".
- In response to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg discussed strengthening NATO's eastern flank. This was reported on the State Department website.
- Ireland has already received and officially registered 10,000 Ukrainian refugees. The Irish deputy prime minister, Leo Varadkar, said this in an address to parliament, CNN has reported.
- The US has "seen signs that the Ukrainians are now going on the offensive a bit more". Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said this during a briefing on 22 March.
- The Ukrainian Armed Forces launched strikes against Russian occupying forces in Zaporizhzhya Region on 22 March. This was reported by the Southern Group of Forces Command on Facebook.
- Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has used 75 per cent of the battalion-tactical groups at his disposal across Russia in Ukraine. An unnamed Pentagon official said this at a briefing, the agency's press office said.
- Russia plans to suppress pro-Ukrainian protests in Ukraine's temporarily occupied territories. This was reported by Britain's Ministry of Defence, citing intelligence reports.
- French President Emmanuel Macron spoke to Russian dictator Vladimir Putin on the phone for an hour on 22 March but failed to persuade him to cease fire. Le Figaro writes about it.
- The United States is preparing a new package of sanctions against Russia which will include more than 300 members of the illegitimate Duma. It is reported by The Wall Street Journal.
- In Berdyansk, Russian Kafirs kidnapped businessman and opposition MP Oleksandr Ponomaryov, his businesses shut down in protest.
- Rashists continue killing civilians in Donetsk Region. This was stated by the head of the Donetsk military administration, Pavlo Kyrylenko.
- Russian occupants looted and destroyed the new Central Analytical Laboratory in Chornobyl.
Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian Parliament) Ruslan Stefanchuk called on the citizens of Belarus to resist joining the war on the territory of Ukraine as they are being pulled into it by “the war criminal” Putin. The Speaker posted this on his Facebook page.
“He wants to bind you by the blood of innocent Ukrainians, Russians, and Belarusians, and deprive you of your future. The Russian troops have sneaked into Ukraine through the territory of Belarus, disturbing the radioactive ashes of Chornobyl that is haunting Ukrainians and Belarusians once again, 36 years later”, he said.
Stefanchuk urged Belarusians to not sacrifice their best that is lives of their “sons and daughters”. He urged mothers to not let their sons go to war in Ukraine.
Over March 22, Ukrainian air defense shot down six Russian planes, five winged missiles, five UAVs, and one helicopter, as reported by the Air Force Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Strike aircraft launched attacks on ground targets today: accumulation of equipment and enemy personnel. In addition, fighter jets were covering from the air and shot two Russian winged missiles.
Air defense of the Ground Forces shot down one UAV and one winged missile. Another missile was shot down by a member of the air-assault troops using shoulder-fired missiles.
Moreover, 11 targets were shot by the SAM regiment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. That is five planes, one helicopter, four UAVs, and a winged missile.
Air Force Command specifically noted that the “anniversary” 100th plane of the occupiers was struck down by the defenders of Mariupol.
In Sumy region, the occupiers are terrorizing the occupied territories and are not allowing to bury the civilians killed. The Head of the Sumy Military Administration Dmytro Zhyvytskyi reported this in his video address.
“In the Trostyanka village, they shot a woman who was merely passing by on a bicycle. They do not allow to bury the dead, to bury the killed. We are facing a huge issue of trying to preserve the bodies in the morgue”, Zhyvytskyi told of the atrocities of the occupiers.
According to the Head of the Regional Military Administration, rescue teams cannot extinguish the fires as “they are prevented from reaching the site of fire” due to shelling. Local residents say that the women have been giving births at home as there is no way to get to a hospital.
Excerpts from the address of the President Volodymyr Zelenskyy summing up the day of March 21.
“Today has been one of those days that allow us to confidently say that the whole worlds stands with us. In the morning, I spoke with His Holiness Pope Francis about finding peace for Ukraine and our state, about the atrocities of the invaders, and about humanitarian corridors into the occupied cities. I thanked His Holiness for his clear and firm position against the war and for his prayers for Ukraine. I invited him to visit out state at this most important time”.
...
“I addressed both chambers of the Italian Parliament today. I have felt their utmost support. There was genuine warmth in their words. I urged Italy to intensify sanctions against Russia and against its regime”.
...
"This was followed by a crucial conversation with the prime-minister of Canada. We continue to coordinate positions before NATO and G7 summits that will be held as soon as this week. Justin Trudeau will support us”.
...
“I am grateful to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece who was the first amongst European officials to show support for our humanitarian corridors in Mariupol”.
...
“Despite all hardships, we have succeeded today in rescuing 7,026 residents of Mariupol. Tomorrow these crucial efforts shall continue”.
....
“Another important piece of news: an online tool has been created for anyone able and wiling to assist in bringing humanitarian cargo to Ukraine. In the past two weeks alone, our state received over 100,000 tons of humanitarian aid”.
...
"Our armed forces have lightened up our hearts once again. Once again, it is Chornobayivka - and once again, the occupiers have been destroyed. Russian planes downed once again. What is especially important, a bomber above Mariupol was struck down. This is what will happen to anyone killing our people, peaceful people in our peaceful land. I would like to reiterate this to all Russian pilots who are not thinking what kind of order they are executing. Killing civilians is a crime. And you will be held responsible in any way possible. Whether it is today or tomorrow is of less importance. What matters is that this is inevitable”.
...
“This week, three important summits are happening that is G7, NATO, and EU summits. New sanctions and new aid to come. We shall work and we shall fight in all ways possible”.
As of the morning of March 22, as reported by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Russian military lost around 15,300 people in personnel, as well as
99 planes, 123 helicopters, 35 UAVs, 45 air-defense systems, 80 multiple rocket launchers, 252 artillery systems, 509 tanks, 15 special equipment units, 1000 military vehicles, 70 oil and fuel tanks, 2 speed boats and one ship.
According to the vice prime minister Iryna Vereshchuk, as of March 19, there were 562 Russian prisoners of war.
In Prague, candles made a sign "Children" in front of the National Theatre to draw the world's attention to the blockade of Mariupol by the Russian occupants. This was reported by the press service of the Ukrainian embassy in the Czech Republic.
The inscription has become a symbol - it was made near a theatre in Mariupol, where women and children were being held in a bomb shelter. However, even that did not stop the invaders, who dropped a bomb on the theatre.
Last night in Chornobayivka, Kherson region, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have given a powerful repulse to the Russian occupiers for the eighth time. This was reported to LIGA.net by an eyewitness who shot the video.
Russian occupation troops have hit a military infrastructure facility in Rivne region three times. The head of the Rivne military administration, Vitaliy Koval, said this on Telegram.
"A commission is working at the site and the damage is being assessed," he stressed.
The head of the RMA said that the AFU shot down one enemy UAV and one missile on the territory of the region in the past day.
An online platform has been created for those who are willing and able to help Ukraine.
https://help.gov.ua/
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's address at the end of the 27th day of the war.
"We will work, we will fight as hard as we can. Till the last. Bravely and openly. On all platforms. Full of intensity. For results. With all our strength. And we will not get tired. We will have a rest when we win," said Zelenskyy.
The 27th day of the war. Video Digest from the Ministry of Defence.
The 93rd Brigade "Kholodnyi Yar" has published a video to a Prodigy song called invadersmustdie, in which one can see how the Ukrainian armed forces destroy the occupiers.
The administration of US President Joe Biden has not confirmed any weapons deliveries by China to Russia following Biden's call to Xi Jinping, US national security adviser Jake Sullivan said. "I can't make predictions for the future. What I can tell you is that after these meetings or after the president's conversation with Xi, we haven't seen China supply military equipment to Russia, but of course we are watching it closely," Sullivan said.
The head of the Mykolayiv regional state administration, Vitaliy Kim, showed yesterday's missile that was shot down by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
The head of the presidential office, Andriy Yermak, urged the world to effectively help Ukraine to stop Russia, which intends to "win at any cost". The security of not only Europe but also of the entire world depends on the outcome of this war, he in his speech during a video conference with representatives of the Royal Institute of International Affairs at Chatham House.
Citizens who have left their homes are asked to avoid a hasty return, First Deputy Interior Minister Yevhen Yenin stressed.
"I would like to urge everyone to remain cautious, calm and avoid a hasty return to abandoned buildings, as unpleasant 'surprises' may await there: abandoned weapons, ammunition, mines, booby-traps and many other things that the average citizen's unprepared eye may not notice," Yenin said.
He urged Ukrainians to wait for the return of the authorities and the appropriate "mopping up" of a particular settlement.
Major meteorological data provider EUMETSAT has suspended cooperation with Russia amid fears that the Russian Federation could use weather data to plan biological or chemical attacks, Reuters reports.
The Russian occupiers launched three attacks today in the area of Operational Group East. All enemy offensive attempts were successfully repelled.
The losses of the occupiers were as follows:
personnel - 54 servicemen;
Tanks - 5 (3 destroyed, 2 damaged);
SAU, cannons - 1;
ATS - 5;
aircrafts - 2;
UAVS - 2;
special equipment - 1;
Seized infantry fighting vehicles - 3.
Prosecutor-General Iryna Venediktova said that Russian propagandists Dmitry Kiselyov and Olga Skabeyeva are now under the procedural status of suspects.
"The other details are obvious, so I won't take up your time. The consequences are also obvious," Venediktova wrote.
According to the Cyber Police, Skabeyeva and Kiselyov have been declared suspected of encroaching on Ukraine's territorial integrity.