Again explosions in Kyiv – Heavy fighting in Kharkiv, Donetsk and Cherson

Kyiv Numerous Russian drones loaded with explosives attacked the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Monday morning. Loud explosions shook the city, buildings were set on fire. According to authorities, several people were killed.

Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the central Shevchenko district was one of the areas hit. Blocks of flats and another building caught fire. He called on the city’s residents to seek shelter.

18 people were rescued from the rubble of a residential building, said Klitschko. Rescue workers tried to find two other people known to be under the rubble.

“All night and all morning the enemy terrorizes the civilian population,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. “Kamikaze drones and missiles are attacking all of Ukraine.” And: “The enemy can attack our cities, but he will not be able to break us.”

It was initially unclear how many drones were used. In the Kyiv region alone, 13 drones that had come from the south were shot down, said a spokesman for the Ukrainian Air Force, Yuriy Ihnat.

A week ago, Russia fired rockets at the center of Kyiv, also at the beginning of the week during morning rush hour. Previously there had been an explosion on the bridge to the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea annexed by Moscow.

Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin had accused the Ukrainian secret service of a “terrorist attack” against the bridge – and then had the rockets fired in retaliation. More than a dozen people died and more than 100 were injured in Kyiv and other cities in Ukraine.

Heavy fighting continues in Kharkiv, Donetsk and Kherson

According to the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Russian forces continue to shell Ukrainian positions on multiple fronts, including cities in the Kharkiv, Donetsk and Kherson regions.

The heaviest fighting is taking place north of Bakhmut, writes Ukrainian military expert Oleh Zhdanov on the Internet. Ukrainian forces have repulsed Russian advances on the cities of Torske and Sprine in the past 24 hours. “(The Russians) have decided to move through Torske and Sprine.” The front line is constantly shifting. “Our command is moving reinforcements there, men and artillery, to counter Russian superiority in those areas.”

Selenski wants to export more grain and save electricity

Zelensky said in his daily video address on Sunday that although the war continues to hamper exports, Ukraine has exported nearly eight million tons of food by sea since the Grains Agreement came into effect. “That’s more than 300 ships. 60 percent of the amount went to Africa and Asia.”

Just a few days ago, Russia threatened to stop the grain deal and to block the Ukrainian ports again because Moscow believes that promises made to Russia had not been kept and that the explosives used in the attack on the Crimean bridge were allegedly transported by sea from the smuggled into Ukraine.

In view of the Russian attacks on the energy infrastructure, Zelensky asked his compatriots to save electricity. “Due to Russian missile terror, in some cities and regions of Ukraine it is necessary to limit electricity supply in order for the whole system to work stably,” he said.

In the evening rush hours in particular, it is necessary to save electricity, as otherwise there would be overloads and the electricity companies would be forced to switch off.

Belarus is arming its civil defense

In Belarus, against the background of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, its own military activities are increasing. “Now we have received all the weapons we should have received from the Ministry of Defense and have stored them in the armories,” said the head of the Belarusian civil defense, Vadim Sinyavsky, on state television on Sunday. At the same time, units were formed that could be used together with the military “to defend the fatherland”.

At the same time, the senior official spoke of around 5,000 underground facilities that could be used as bomb shelters in Belarus. The Belarusian border guard meanwhile announced that it had strengthened its units at the border “because of the increased reconnaissance activities of Ukraine”.

First Russian soldiers for joint force in Belarus

Meanwhile, Russia sent the first soldiers for a joint force with Belarus to the neighboring country. “The first troop trains with Russian soldiers (…) arrived in Belarus,” the Russian agency TASS quoted a spokesman for the Ministry of Defense in Minsk as saying on Sunday. “The transfer will take several days. The total number will be a little less than 9,000 people,” it said.

Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko announced last Monday that he was setting up a joint regional force with Russia. In view of the rising tensions, it should protect the Belarusian border. Lukashenko denies that his country will take part in the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.

Ukraine puts bounty on ex-separatist leader Girkin

Meanwhile, the former leader of the separatists in Donbass, Igor Girkin, known by his alias Strelkov, wants to take part. According to Russian military bloggers, Girkin enlisted in a volunteer battalion for deployment in Ukraine. The Ukrainian military intelligence agency HUR has offered a bounty of $100,000 (around €103,000) for the capture of the former Russian intelligence officer. Among other things, Girkin is held responsible for shooting down a passenger plane over the Donbass.

Still no access to prisoners of war: Red Cross rejects criticism

The Red Cross defends itself against criticism from Kyiv that it has not yet visited numerous prisoners of war. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has moral obligations, Ukrainian President Selensky said last week and demanded immediate visits. “Blaming the ICRC for being denied full and immediate access does not help prisoners of war or their families,” the ICRC said on Sunday evening. Eleven employees, including a doctor, are available for such visits in the Russian-occupied Donetsk region, but have not yet received permission.

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This must come from the participating states. According to the Geneva Conventions, they are obliged to grant access to the ICRC. For almost eight months, the ICRC has been demanding in vain that all places where prisoners of war are interned – including the Olenivka prison camp – be allowed to visit freely and regularly.

That will be important on Monday

The foreign ministers of the EU states are discussing further support for Ukraine this Monday (9.30 a.m.) in Luxembourg. At the meeting, a training mission for the Ukrainian armed forces and the use of a further 500 million euros for the purchase of weapons and equipment are to be decided.

Against the background of tensions with Russia, NATO begins its annual maneuvers to defend the European alliance area with nuclear weapons. According to NATO information, 13 other countries will be involved in the Steadfast Noon exercise alongside Germany. The scene is in particular the airspace over Belgium, Great Britain and the North Sea.

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