nine injured in Russian strike in flood-hit Kherson

• 4:29 p.m .: Nine injured in Russian strike in flood-hit Kherson

A Russian strike on the center of Kherson, a city affected by major flooding after the destruction of a dam, left nine injured, according to the Ukrainian Ministry of the Interior. The regional prosecutor’s office had previously reported one death.

“Nine people were injured as a result of a bombardment,” the ministry said on Telegram, specifying separately “not to have received information” on possible deaths.

A figure confirmed by the regional governor, Oleksandre Prokudin, who specified that among these people were “two rescuers, a policeman, a nurse and a German volunteer”.

• 4:03 p.m .: Ukraine asks Europe to provide it with more electricity

Ukraine asks Europe to significantly increase its electricity deliveries after Russian attacks “on the country’s energy infrastructure” and the destruction of the Kakhovka dam which caused massive flooding, said the Ukrainian Minister of l ‘Energy, German Galoutchenko, to AFP.

“We are asking Europe to increase” the electricity import ceiling to bring it to 2 gigawatts instead of the current one gigawatt, he said, also ensuring that the Zaporijjia nuclear power plant does not presented “no imminent risk at this stage” but required to be “monitored”.

• 3:31 p.m .: Russia claims to have repelled a Ukrainian offensive in the Zaporizhia region

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu says his troops have countered a Ukrainian offensive in the Zaporizhia region of southern Ukraine, as Kiev says it is ready to launch an assault to reclaim occupied territories by Moscow.

“Today (Thursday) at 1:30 a.m. (22:30 GMT) in the morning in the area of ​​Zaporizhia the enemy tried to break through our defenses with (…) up to 1,500 men and 150 armored vehicles “, Sergei Shoigu said in a press release. “The enemy is stopped and retreating with heavy losses,” he added. “Enemy forces specially trained for the implementation of this breakthrough did not fulfill their task.”

>> To read also: Why the destruction of the Kakhovka dam does not bury the Ukrainian counter-offensive

“As a result of a two-hour battle, the enemy lost 30 tanks, 11 infantry fighting vehicles and up to 350 men,” Sergei Shoigu said. Unverifiable claims from independent sources.

Ukrainian authorities have not made official comments.

• 2:54 p.m .: the trial of an official of the NGO Memorial begins for “discrediting” the Russian army

The trial of one of the leaders of the NGO Memorial, Oleg Orlov, accused of having “discredited” the Russian army and who faces up to five years in prison, has opened in Moscow. Memorial figure, co-winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, Oleg Orlov, 70, has repeatedly criticized the Russian war in Ukraine. He denies all charges against him.

Shortly before the start of the hearing, the human rights defender, dressed in a blue jacket and shirt, showed confidence in front of the press covering his trial.

“Everything will be fine,” assured this gray-haired man, smiling. “I am a human rights defender, I have dealt for many years with violations of human rights and humanitarian law standards in the conflict zone (…). This obliges”. “Someone might say to himself that it is better to be silent. But all my life and my position have always obliged me and oblige me not to be silent”, he underlined.

>> To read also: In Paris, the NGO Memorial continues its fight against a Russian state that is rewriting history

Oleg Orlov is accused of “public activities aimed at discrediting” the Russian armed forces, an article of the criminal code used against critics of the conflict in Ukraine – a repressive text which has recently been further toughened. Many Russian personalities and anonymous people have been imprisoned for this reason.

• 2:17 p.m .: Russian strike kills in flood-hit Kherson

A Russian strike on the center of Kherson, a city hit by major flooding after the destruction of a dam upstream of the Dnieper River, left people dead and injured, a Ukrainian army official said.

“As a result of Russian artillery shelling, there are wounded and killed civilians in the city center of Kherson. Their number is being clarified,” Sergey Sergeyev, a press officer, told AFP. in the zone.

According to the regional prosecutor’s office, “a civilian was killed (…) and two other people were injured,” he said in a statement. In a village near Kherson, “four residents were injured” in another strike, he added.

Ukrainians have accused the Russian army of strikes on Kherson in recent days, as authorities evacuate thousands of civilians from flooded areas following the destruction of a dam located upstream on the Dnieper River. Russia, on the other hand, says the Ukrainian army is targeting civilians being evacuated, killing two earlier on Thursday, according to Moscow-installed occupation authorities.

• 1:06 p.m .: Russian occupation accuses kyiv of killing two civilians in a strike on an evacuation point

Russian occupation authorities in Ukraine accused Kyiv on Thursday of killing two people in a strike on an evacuation point – where relief workers installed by Moscow are helping civilians leave flooded areas, near the destroyed Kakhovka dam.

“(Ukrainian forces) today committed a heinous crime. They shelled the evacuation point of civilians in Gola Pristan. Two people died, including a 33-year-old pregnant woman,” said Vladimir Saldo, an official. of the Russian occupation in the Kherson region. “Two other people are injured and have been taken to hospital,” he added on Telegram.

• 12:27 p.m .: Kremlin warns of “negative” impact on grain deal after ammonia pipeline explosion

The explosion on Monday of an ammonia pipeline in Ukraine, essential for the export of fertilizers, risks having a “negative impact” on the future of the grain agreement crucial for the world’s food supply, warned the Kremlin.

“It can only have a negative impact,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. The resumption of operation of this pipeline, disabled since February 2022, is demanded by Russia in the context of negotiations, with the UN, on the extension of the cereals agreement which has allowed the export of millions of tonnes of Ukrainian cereals .

• 11:29 a.m .: report in Kherson, under water after the explosion of the Kakhovka dam

• 10:54 a.m .: Ukraine attacked the dam with artillery, says Russia before the ICJ

Russia has accused Ukraine in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) of destroying the dam using “massive” artillery strikes, rejecting Kiev’s claims that Moscow is responsible.

“The Kyiv regime not only launched massive artillery attacks on the dam (…) but also deliberately raised the water level of the Kakhovka reservoir to a critical level,” said Russian diplomat Alexander Shulgin.

• 10:45 a.m .: in Kherson, Zelensky salutes the work of the rescuers

President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed the work of Ukrainian rescuers during a trip to the flood-stricken city of Kherson.

“Our task is to protect lives and help people as much as possible. I thank the rescuers and the volunteers!”, He greeted on social networks. In a video accompanying his message, we can see him interacting with officials, visibly moved.

• 10:39 a.m .: five dead in the territories occupied by Moscow, according to Russian news agencies

Five people drowned after the destruction of the Kakhovka dam in Kherson, a region in southern Ukraine partially occupied by Russia, Russian news agencies reported citing local authorities.

“Five people who were grazing cattle died by drowning,” Vladimir Leontiev, the mayor of the Russian-installed town of Nova Kakhovka, was quoted by Russian agencies as saying.

• 10:20 a.m.: Zelensky in the flood-hit Kherson region

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the Kherson region, affected since Tuesday by floods which prompted thousands of civilians to evacuate, after the destruction of the Kakhovka dam on the Dnieper River.

“Working trip to the Kherson region. Coordination meeting to deal with the consequences of the explosion of the Kakhovka dam”, he said on his social networks, saying he wanted in particular to “compensate the inhabitants affected by the disaster “.

• 8:36 am: an area of ​​more than 600 km2 flooded after the destruction of the Kakhovka dam

The destruction of the Kakhovka dam flooded an area of ​​more than 600 km2 in southern Ukraine, on the right bank of the Dnieper river controlled by the Ukrainians as on the left bank occupied by the Russians, announced a Ukrainian governor.

“Six hundred square kilometers are flooded in the Kherson region. 32% are on the right bank and 68% on the left bank,” Kherson region governor Oleksandr Prokudin said on social media.

• 1:15 am: The World Bank will quickly assess the damage after the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam

The World Bank will quickly assess the damage and needs after the partial destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine, the World Bank’s Managing Director for Operations said on Wednesday.

Anna Bjerde, wrote in a tweet that the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam had “many and very serious consequences for the deployment of essential services and on the environment”.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Chmyhal tweeted that he had discussed the consequences of the dam’s destruction with Anna Bjerde, saying that she had assured him that the World Bank would carry out a rapid assessment of the damage and the consequences. needs.

• 12:59 a.m.: Aid organizations must intervene immediately, says Zelensky

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday that international humanitarian organizations should intervene immediately to provide aid after the partial destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine.

Volodymyr Zelensky felt that any organization that was not already there was simply incapable. “It is necessary that international organizations, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, immediately get involved in the rescue operations and help the inhabitants of the occupied part of the Kherson region,” said the Ukrainian president during his his daily address. “If an international organization is not present on the spot, it means that it does not exist or that it is incapable”.

Volodymyr Zelensky said that people in areas occupied by Russian forces in southern Ukraine had no access to drinking water, food, or medical aid, and that it was impossible to determine how many of them were at risk of dying.

Emmanuel Macron announced the dispatch Wednesday evening, “in the very next hours”, of “aid to meet the immediate needs” of Ukraine in the face of the destruction of the Kakhovka hydroelectric dam in the south of the country. France will quickly dispatch a first convoy of around ten tonnes of products requested by the Ukrainians, in terms of health, hygiene and water sanitation, including a portable cistern.

With AFP and Reuters