More than two weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine, attacks on battered Ukrainian cities are intensifying again.
- in the Ukraine conflict* Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj demands the release of the mayor of the city of Melitopol, which is occupied by Russian troops.
- The Ukrainian capital of Kyiv is in Ukraine war* increased focus.
- war in the Ukraine*: The latest developments in the news ticker.
+++ 10.40 a.m.: According to British intelligence, a large Russian military column has partially dispersed north of Kyiv. This is likely to aid a Russian attempt to encircle the Ukrainian capital, the UK MoD said on Twitter. It could also be an attempt to reduce one’s own vulnerability to Ukrainian counterattacks. These would have already taken a heavy toll on the Russians.
+++ 10.00 a.m.: Several cities in Ukraine have reported renewed fighting and shelling. “The occupiers shelled hospitals and boarding schools at night with indiscriminate, chaotic fire,” wrote the governor of the southern Ukrainian region of Mykolaiv Vitaly Kim. Two people were injured. The attackers would have changed their tactics and would hide in villages between civilian buildings. “Now there are no more rules, we will crack down on them,” announced the governor.
+++ 9.30 a.m.: According to the Defense Ministry in Moscow, the Russian army is continuing its attacks in the Ukraine war on a “broad front”. An air force base in Vasylkiv near the capital Kyiv and the intelligence center of the Ukrainian armed forces in Brovary were put out of action, ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said on Saturday.
According to Russian information, their own troops and those of the separatists from Luhansk and Donetsk again took numerous towns in eastern Ukraine. Units of the Donetsk “People’s Militia” advanced another nine kilometers, the Russian armed forces a total of 21 kilometers and the groups of the “Luhansk People’s Republic” six kilometers. The Russian military information could not be verified.
Update from Saturday, March 12, 2022, 8:45 a.m.: Kyiv is once again becoming the center of attention in the Ukraine war. Ukraine’s General Staff warned that the Russian army was trying to knock out defenses west and north-west of the capital in a bid to “blockade” Kyiv. Meanwhile, the Russian army is also approaching the city from the north-east. Ukrainian soldiers told reporters from the AFP news agency about fierce fighting for control of the main highway leading to Kyiv near Velyka Dymerka.
War in Ukraine: Russian offensives near Kyiv “partially” successful
First report from Saturday, March 12th, 2022: Kyiv – Get caught in the Ukraine war Kyiv* back in sight. The Russian army is encircling the Ukrainian capital more and more, and presidential adviser Mykhailo Podoliak spoke of a “state of siege”. Further air raids are also being reported from the west of the country, not far from the border with Poland. US President Joe Biden* meanwhile issues an urgent warning.
The Ukrainian General Staff announced that there were Russian offensives around Kyiv on the northern city limits near Zazymya and to the south near Vyshenky. These offensives were partly successful in some areas. In the capital Kyiv, flight alarms were triggered at least three times on Saturday night. “Minutes of” shelling could be heard in the city from afar on Saturday morning, according to CNN.
War in Ukraine: New airstrikes also in the west of the country
Russian Air Force strategic bombers are said to have used cruise missiles in the cities of Lutsk, Ivano-Frankivsk and Dnipro. Lutsk and Ivano-Frankivsk are located north and south of the city of Lviv, not far from the Polish border. Rocket attacks were also reported from Mykolaiv in southern Ukraine. The information could not be independently verified.
According to Ukrainian military information, Russian troops are trying to blockade the north-east Ukrainian city of Chernihiv from the south-west. The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy* said that in Chernihiv, an important water main was damaged by shelling. As a result, the city with almost 280,000 inhabitants was without water supply.
Ukraine war: kidnapping of mayor according to Zelenskyj “sign of weakness”
In a video speech, Zelenskyy demanded the release of the mayor of the city of Melitopol, which was occupied by Russian troops. Pressure on mayors or their “physical elimination”. Russia* not help to take over Ukrainian cities. Such an approach is a “sign of weakness” on the part of Russia.
Ukraine war: Biden warns of third world war
According to President Joe Biden, a direct military confrontation in Ukraine between the US military and the Russian armed forces must be prevented in order to avoid a “Third World War”. The US military and NATO partners will unite and defend “every inch” of alliance territory “with full force,” Biden wrote on Twitter. “But we will not go to war with Russia in Ukraine. A direct confrontation between NATO and Russia is World War III – and something we must strive to prevent,” the Democrat wrote. (cs/dpa)*fr.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA.
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