Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - According to a Ukrainian official, Russian forces shut off all avenues for evacuating civilians from the...
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| Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - According to a Ukrainian official, Russian forces shut off all avenues for evacuating civilians from the eastern Ukrainian city of Sievierodonetsk by destroying the last bridge connecting it to a Ukrainian-controlled city on the other side of the river.
As the Russian onslaught in the eastern Donbas region neared a breakthrough success, regional governor Sergei Gaidai stated on social media that 70 percent of Sievierodonetsk was under enemy control.
The situation of Ukrainian soldiers holding out in the city, according to Gaidai, is "tough, but under control." However, he claimed that the destruction of the last bridge across the river to the twin city of Lysychansk meant that any inhabitants remaining in Sievierodonetsk were besieged and that humanitarian aid could not be delivered.
Russian artillery also blasted the Azot chemical factory, where hundreds of civilians were reportedly sheltering, according to Gaidai.
Ukraine has become increasingly desperate for more Western heavy weapons to assist defend Sievierodonetsk, which Kyiv believes holds the key to the struggle for the eastern Donbas region and the war's course.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy stated late Monday that the battle for eastern Donbas would go down in history as one of the most horrific in European history. Russian separatists claim the territory, which includes the provinces of Luhansk and Donetsk.
"This war comes at a heavy cost for us. It's terrifying "he stated
"On a daily basis, we bring our partners' attention to the fact that Ukraine's advantage will be secured only if it has a sufficient number of modern artillery."
The fundamental purpose of Russia is to safeguard Donetsk and Luhansk, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who commented after the head of one of the separatist territories requested extra Russian military.
According to Presidential Adviser Mykhailo Podolyak, Ukraine requires 1,000 howitzers, 500 tanks, and 1,000 drones, among other heavy weapons.
Moscow said it has destroyed US and European armaments and equipment in the most recent of numerous reports.
High-precision air-based missiles struck near the train station in Udachne, northwest of Donetsk, targeting equipment sent to Ukrainian forces, according to Russia's defence ministry.
On Telegram, Ukraine's interior ministry reported that a Russian strike hit Udachne late Sunday into Monday, but did not specify if weapons were targeted.
Moscow has chastised the US and other countries for delivering weaponry to Ukraine, threatening to hit new targets if the West provides long-range missiles.
According to Politico, which cited numerous anonymous individuals, the European Commission will suggest that Ukraine be granted official status as an EU candidate country.
The EU executive's opinion on Ukraine's bid to join will be ready by the end of this week, according to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
MARIUPOL ONCE MORE?
According to Russia's RIA news agency, pro-Moscow separatist spokesperson Eduard Basurin said Ukrainian troops in Sievierodonetsk were virtually cut off and should submit or die.
According to Damien Magrou, a spokesperson for the International Legion for the Defense of Ukraine, which has forces in Sievierodonetsk, the situation might become similar to Mariupol, with "a significant enclave of Ukrainian defenders shut off from the rest of the Ukrainian military."
Hundreds of civilians and seriously injured Ukrainian soldiers were besieged in the Azovstal steelworks for weeks after Mariupol fell last month.
Russia has denied targeting civilians in a "special operation" aimed at restoring Russian security and "denazifying" its neighbour.
Ukraine and its Western supporters denounce this as a spurious excuse for an invasion that has murdered hundreds of people and sparked concerns of wider European conflict.
On 5 million people have left, and the world is experiencing a food and energy crisis, which has divided Western governments over how to respond.
Following the failure to take Kyiv, Ukraine's capital, on February 24, Moscow focused on strengthening its grip in the Donbas, where pro-Russian separatists had controlled territory since 2014. Russia has also attempted to extend its control over Ukraine's Black Sea coast.
On Monday evening, Donetsk regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko informed Ukrainian television that "the entire front is being subjected to relentless shelling."
In the coal-producing belt, the towns of Maryinka, Krasnohorivka, Vuhledar, and Avdiivka, which is home to a large coking plant, were hit, he claimed.
Ukrainian shelling targeted a market in Donetsk city, killing at least three people, including a child, and wounding 18 others, according to officials in the Russian-backed separatist-controlled Donetsk area.
The Donetsk News Agency published photos of burning stalls and bodies on the ground at the central Maisky market. On Monday, 155-mm NATO-standard artillery shells impacted areas of the region, according to the news agency.
According to Russian news outlets, a shell landed on a maternity hospital in Donetsk, causing a fire and forcing personnel to evacuate patients to the basement.
The reports could not be independently verified by Reuters. The reports have elicited no immediate response from Kyiv.
Stephane Dujarric, a spokesman for the United Nations, said officials have seen reports of the hospital attack.
"This is really concerning," said Dujarric. "Any attack on civilian infrastructure, particularly health facilities, is clearly illegal under international law."
