Russia strengthens attack on Kharkiv

Kharkiv, Ukraine — Olga Bidenko was sleeping in bed when the explosion shook her apartment building and the walls and ceiling fell on her.

Her rescuer dug her out, and on Sunday morning she sat on the sidewalk and her face as her friend used tweezers to remove debris from her ankles. I frowned.

Half of the house was flattened by the attack, and police said it was probably the result of a missile launched from Russian territory at 11 pm. Saturday.

Russian troops recently intensified attacks in and around the city ofKharkiv, destroyed buildings, killed civilians, and pushed the city to the edge.

The increase in missiles, rockets and shells is a step back from Ukraine's second largest center, andappeared to be normal just a month ago.

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"All areas of Kharkiv have been bombarded," said Oleksandr Volobuyev, head of state of Kharkiv, at a sports facility on Friday. After visiting the site, he said.

"Unfortunately, the number of bombardments has increased, and the number of dead, civilians, and dead children has increased," he said.

On Sunday morning, a missile also attacked Kieu's apartment, killing one.

According to the Institute for the Study of War, Russia aims to prevent the Ukrainian Defense Forces from further advancing toward the border by attacking Kharkiv.

Russians are also trying to protect the eastern location of Kharkiv, collectively known as Donbus, which was used to support attacks on southern Luhansk and the Donetsk region.

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Kharkiv medical facility attacks on Saturday night I was. Earlier that day, a downtown office tower was struck. An athletic facility trained by Ukrainian Olympic athletes was bombed on Friday.

Only non-military facilities were attacked when Russia said it was trying to tire the population.

"It repeats every night," said Volodymyr Timoshko, chief of the Ukrainian National Police in the Kharkiv region. "What they're doing is an increase in panic. They're just killing civilians."

Police, military, and war crimes prosecutors were at the scene of the bombing of the apartment on Sunday. .. The attack injured two people and took place minutes after the missile was launched from Belgorod, Russia, said Tymoshko.

Increased ranged attacks encounter the presence of visibly stronger troops on the streets Did. Construction of a new military position.

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"Russia is currently doing What the Kharkiv region is a war crime, "regional governor Oleg Sinevboff wrote in Telegram. "This is true terrorism against the general public."

He said the Russians had "no chance" to catch Kharkiv and targeted civilians after losing the battle in the city. Stated. "Russia will be held liable for any crime in the Ukrainian soil," he said.

Russian troops attempted to occupy Kharkiv at the beginning of the invasion on February 24, but failed. After holding a position in the city, they were pushed back into their border pockets.

During the war, Kharkiv faced what Amnesty International called "a relentless campaign of indiscriminate artillery" by Russia.

"They bombarded residential areas almost every day, killing hundreds of civilians and causing massive destruction. Many of the attacks used widely banned cluster bombs. "It was done," the group said in a report on June 13.

When Kharkiv is back in sight of Russia, the Ukrainians are preparing to protect the city.

In the rural grasslands outside Kharkiv, about 40 members of theAzov Regimenthave recently been Weapon training was conducted in the afternoon.

"We're going to do two exercises today," the instructor announced before showing how to shoot Kalashnikov at a target 100 meters away while constantly moving.

The group then split and half of the camouflaged trainees walked into a nearby valley and practiced launching rocket-propelled grenade launchers into the hillsides of sandy beaches.

The Azov Regiment, known for its attempts to protect Mariupol, is a paramilitary organization formed in 2014 to fight Russian troops in Donbus, Ukraine. It works in tandem with the Ukrainian army.

"We are ready to do everything we need to stop them," said an Azov spokesman who only identified himself as Go. "We have not given them the meters of our homeland."

Even before the recent surge in attacks, the Kharkiv belt has already been severely damaged. rice field.

School principal Oleksandr Gryanik walks through the halls of educational institutions in grades 5-11 and tells reporters a gap in the roof. A hole, a shattered window, a crater in the garden.

The rocket was intact in a room that pays homage to Ukrainian culture, where clothing, dried flowers and crafts are on display.

"This is where our children feel most strongly Ukrainian," he said. "And this is a completely untouched room."

He said the room would stimulate the reconstruction of the post-war school.

"They think school is the beginning of nationalism," he said of the Russians. "And that's true. It's a building that provides the knowledge we need to love our country."

Stewart.Bell@globalnews.ca

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