More than 70 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed after Russian artillery hit a military base in Okhtyrka, a city between Kharkiv and Kyiv, the head of the region wrote on Telegram.
Dmytro Zhyvytskyy posted photographs of the charred shell of a four-story building and rescuers searching rubble. In a later Facebook post, he said many Russian soldiers and some local residents also were killed during the fighting on Sunday. The report could not immediately be confirmed.
More on the Kharkiv missile attack from our correspondent Luke Harding:
Ukraine’s operational command says Russian forces have fired a rocket at the regional administration building in Kharkiv.
Video shows a massive explosion with the building hit directly. Several civilian cars were passing at the time.
The strike was an attempt to kill Kharkiv’s governor and his team leading the defence of the city, Ukraine’s second largest, Kyiv says. Residents say Kharkiv was targeted again last night and this morning.
A second video showed extensive damage from the strike to a private flat, just across the road Kharkiv’s administration building.
Vladimir Putin is frustrated with the slow progress of his military in Ukraine and has been lashing out at people in his inner circle, according to the US network NBC, citing US officials.
NBC says current and former officials briefed on the matter have been told that US intelligence fears the Russian president may take out his frustration by escalating the war on his neighbour.
The report claims that western intelligence have “good visibility” into Putin and although they do not believe he is mentally unstable, he has been unusually harsh on people close to him as his anger grows at the military setbacks and worldwide condemnation of his actions.
It follows news earlier from US senator Chris Murphy who tweeted some snippets from a classified briefing on the war.
Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT)
Just leaving classified briefing on Ukraine crisis. A few takeaways that I can share:
1/ Confirmation that the Russians have fallen behind their timeline. Ukrainian resistance has been fierce and there have been multiple Russian equipment and logistics failures.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has fallen behind schedule thanks to fierce local resistance, and multiple Russian equipment and logistics failures, according to the briefing.
Poland’s deputy interior minister said on Tuesday that about 350,000 people have entered his country from Ukraine since the Russian invasion began last week.
“Over the last 24 hours, 100,000 people crossed the Polish-Ukrainian border,” Maciej Wasik told public broadcaster Polskie Radio 1. “In total, since Thursday, there have already been 350,000 refugees.”
Peter Beaumont in Lviv has more on the deaths of more than 70 Ukrainian troops at a military base in Okhtyrka. Here it is:
Dmytro Zhyvytskyy, regional governor, posted photographs of the charred shell of a four-storey building in Okhtyrka which is located in Sumy oblast between Kharkiv and Kyiv. Rescuers can be seen scouring the rubble for survivors.
In a later Facebook post, he said many Russian soldiers and some local residents died in the bombardment on Monday.
According to some reports shelling or missiles hit a building being used as a base by the Ukrainian military, as well as fuel tanks. One local official claimed fuel-air explosive had been used although that could not be independently confirmed. Video from the time of the attack showed a column of thick black smoke above the town.
Okhtyrka mayor, Pavlo Kuzmenko, posted on Facebook, saying: “Again, the enemy is waging a vile war. A fuel-air bomb was dropped on an oil depot, oil tanks were blown up.”
Satellite images taken on Monday show a Russian military convoy north of Kyiv that stretches for about 40 miles (64km) in an area north-west of Kyiv. It is substantially longer than the 17 miles (27km) reported earlier in the day, according to the US company Maxar.
Maxar, which filed a series of satellite images on the Russian military buildup on the Ukraine border, also said additional ground forces deployments and ground attack helicopter units were seen in southern Belarus, less than 20 miles (32km) north of the Ukraine border.
More multinational businesses have distanced themselves and their dealings from Russia, with Hollywood film studios – at least for now – joining British oil companies Shell and BP:
- Disney, Warner Bros and Sony have all paused theatrical cinema releases in Russia. Disney said the release of the upcoming Pixar film Turning Red was on hold in Russia, citing the “unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and the tragic humanitarian crisis”. Warner has paused The Batman while Sony wil not be releasing its latest, Morbius.
- Mastercard said late on Monday it had blocked multiple financial institutions from its payment network as a result of sanctions imposed on Russia over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
- Visa followed its rival with a statement saying that it is taking action to ensure compliance with sanctions and would also comply with any additional sanctions that may be implemented.
Here’s our full story on the Hollywood studios’ decision:
My colleague in Canberra, Daniel Hurst, writes about Australia’s decision to commit $70m to provide Ukraine with missiles and ammunition. Read the full story here:
More than 70 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed after Russian artillery hit a military base in Okhtyrka, a city between Kharkiv and Kyiv, the head of the region wrote on Telegram.
Dmytro Zhyvytskyy posted photographs of the charred shell of a four-story building and rescuers searching rubble. In a later Facebook post, he said many Russian soldiers and some local residents also were killed during the fighting on Sunday. The report could not immediately be confirmed.
Source: Guardian
