According to Ukrainian sources, the major Russian military offensive in eastern Ukraine has now begun in the Lugansk region. In the small town of Kreminna, the Russian army “came in with a huge amount of war material on Monday evening,” Ukrainian governor of Lugansk, Serhiy Hajdaj, said on Facebook on Monday.
“Our defenders have withdrawn to new positions,” he added. The governor previously reported that Russian troops had advanced as far as Kreminna. ‘The enemy could advance towards Kreminna at night, but could not settle there. The fighting in the city continues.” The governor said four civilians were shot while trying to escape from Kreminna. They wanted to escape the city in their car.
Violent explosions accompany advance
The small town of Kreminna with 18,000 inhabitants is located about 50 kilometers northeast of the city of Kramatorsk and near the currently heavily disputed city of Rubishne. Reporters from the AFP news agency reported on Monday about violent explosions in Rubishne, some of which caused fires. Huge clouds of smoke rose over the city. Ukrainian soldiers fired artillery and mortar shells at Russian positions in Rubishne from Novodrushesk, about two miles away.
The head of pro-Russian separatists in Lugansk, Lenoid Pasechnik, said last week that the Ukrainian army still controls “a part” of Rubishne. Once his fighters “liberated” the entire area, a decision would be made “to provide aid to our brothers in Donetsk and possibly to Russia,” Pasetchnik said.
Zelenskyj: The region must be “destroyed”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia on Sunday evening of “literally killing and destroying” the entire Donbass region. The Russian army is currently preparing a new major offensive in eastern Ukraine. The Ukrainian General Staff announced in its situation report that this was almost over. “In the eastern area of operations, the armed forces of the Russian Federation are completing the formation of an assault force,” it said.
Dead after airstrike on Kharkiv
At least three people have been killed in renewed Russian attacks on the northeastern Ukrainian city of Kharkov, authorities said. Prosecutors say a grenade hit a residential playground on Monday, killing a woman and a man.
The director of an emergency medical center said another attack on a humanitarian aid center has left six dead and six injured. Authorities say six people were killed and 24 others injured in Russian attacks in Kharkov on Sunday. Three other people were killed in the Kharkiv region.
Also shelled refuge Lemberg
Despite most of the fighting having shifted east, Russian attacks continue to spread across most of the map. For example, six people were killed in violent rocket attacks in the far west of Ukraine on Monday morning – Lviv is still considered an internal refuge for Ukrainian refugees. In addition, rocket attacks on Kiev and Dnipropetrovsk were again reported.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
