In his daily evening address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday that Russian “terror” could only be stopped by arms, after an apartment building in eastern Ukraine and energy infrastructure in many areas have been affected in a new wave of attacks. This Sunday, January 15 at dawn, the emergency services were still active in an attempt to find survivors in the ruins of a building in Dnipro (east), hit by a Russian strike which left 20 dead, according to a latest report.
On the front, the town of Soledar, in eastern Ukraine, is still “under Ukrainian control”, assured Saturday the governor of the Donetsk region, Pavlo Kirilenko, noting that “the fighting continues in the city and outside”. Also on Saturday, the United Kingdom announced that it would deliver “in the coming weeks” heavy tanks to Ukraine. A first for the country.
20 dead in a Russian strike in Dnipro
“Russia carried out another massive missile strike on Ukrainian cities […] Is it possible to stop Russian terror? Yes it’s possible. Can we do it other than on the battlefield in Ukraine? Unfortunately, no,” President Zelensky said in his daily televised message.
A video posted by Ukrainian rescue services on Facebook and Telegram showed rescuers digging through the rubble of a building in Dnipro overnight. These services said they had verbal exchanges with a woman trapped under the rubble that they were desperately trying to deliver. The latest death toll is 20, the head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration, Valentyn Reznichenko, announced on Sunday. “Twenty innocent victims,” he lamented on Telegram, adding that 73 people had been injured. “Rescue operations are continuing. The fate of more than 40 people remains unknown,” he added.
According to the Ukrainian presidency, between 100 and 200 people lost their apartments as a result of this strike, and some 1,700 inhabitants of Dnipro were deprived of electricity and heating. Russian attacks have also affected other cities but also energy infrastructure in Kharkiv and Lviv, according to the Ukrainian authorities. In total, “the enemy carried out three air strikes and about fifty missile strikes during the day”, specified the staff of the Ukrainian army. “In addition, the occupiers launched 50 attacks with multiple rocket launchers.”
Moldova says it found missile debris after Russian attacks on Ukraine
Moldova announced on Saturday that it had found missile debris on its territory after a new wave of Russian strikes on Ukraine, condemning these attacks. “The brutal war that Russia is waging against Ukraine has again affected Moldova”, launched its president Maia Sandu on Twitter, illustrating her message with photos of the debris. “Border Police found missile fragments near the village of Larga in northern Moldova. We strongly condemn today’s violent attacks.”
London to deliver heavy tanks to kyiv
The United Kingdom promised on Saturday the delivery “in the coming weeks” of 14 Challenger 2 heavy tanks to Ukraine. The delivery reflects “the UK’s ambition to step up its support for Ukraine,” British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told Volodymyr Zelensky in a phone call, according to a Downing Street statement.
The United Kingdom thus becomes the first country to commit to sending this type of armored vehicle to Ukraine. The Ukrainian head of state thanked the UK on Twitter for taking decisions that “not only will strengthen us on the battlefield, but also send the right signal to other partners”. The announcement caused diplomacy to react. She felt that this shipment of weapons would “in no way accelerate the end of military hostilities, but only intensify them, causing new victims”, according to a press release from the Russian Embassy in London released on Saturday.
City of Soledar holds, according to kyiv
This locality in the east of the country and the one near Bakhmout currently remain the “hottest” points of the conflict, the governor of the Donetsk region, Pavlo Kirilenko, told television on Saturday. Near Soledar, journalists from Agence France Presse saw rescue teams treating wounded Ukrainians. “The situation is difficult, but the Ukrainians are holding their positions,” assured Vadim, a rescuer, who was helping to evacuate a soldier shot in the leg.
The Russian Ministry of Defense said on Friday that the “release” of Soledar had taken place “on January 12 in the evening”. Fighting in and around this town has been raging for several months, but its intensity has increased sharply in recent days. Its capture by the forces of Moscow would constitute a notable victory for Russia, after the series of failures recorded by its troops in recent months.