Russia’s military operations continue to kill in eastern Ukraine. The center of Kharkiv, the country’s second city, was bombarded by the Russian army on Tuesday morning, March 1, announced on Telegram the governor of the region, Oleg Sinegoubov. “The Russian occupier continues to use heavy weapons against the civilian population”he wrote, posting footage of a huge explosion in the city’s central square, Liberty Square, where the local government headquarters are located.
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Ukrainian rescuers reported at midday at least ten dead in the bombardment of the city center. “At least ten people were killed, more than twenty injured. Rescuers and volunteers rescued ten people from the rubble, according to a preliminary count”said the Ukrainian emergency service, broadcasting images of rescuers coming out of the victims of the rubble of a building.
Additionally, at least eight people were killed and six injured in an airstrike on a residential area of the city. “Eight people died, six were injured and 38 people were rescued” after “an airstrike” on a residential building, the Ukrainian Emergency Service said on Facebook, posting photos of rescuers working in a badly damaged building. At least 11 people had already been killed in this city on Monday.
During his address to the European Parliament on Tuesday noon, the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, mentioned this bombardment and denounced “a war crime” perpetrated by the Russian army: “In Kharkiv, there is Freedom Square, the largest in Europe [l’une des plus grandes en réalité]. This morning, two missiles fell on this square, dozens of people were killed. This is the price of freedom today.”
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson denounced bombings “absolutely disgusting”, comparing them to the deadly strikes that targeted Sarajevo in the 1990s. “It reminds me of the bombing of the Sarajevo market, with the loss of innocent people in Bosnia, it gives this impression of an atrocity deliberately committed against civilians”did he declare.
Russia still denies hitting non-military targets. About 1.4 million people ordinarily live in Kharkiv, a largely Russian-speaking city on the border with Russia. It has been targeted by Russian forces since the start of the assault launched on February 24 on the orders of Vladimir Putin. Local authorities said on Monday they had postponed a “breakthrough” Russian ground troops.
Fighting also took place on Monday in Okhtyrka, about 100 kilometers northwest of Kharkiv. These clashes would have killed “about 70 Ukrainian fighters” but also many Russians, according to local authorities. Asked by AFP, the Ukrainian army did not confirm this assessment.
400 kilometers away, the city of Mariupol, on the Sea of Azov, is without electricity after a Russian offensive. The leader of the pro-Russian separatists in the Donetsk region, Denis Pushilin, explained that the objective was to encircle this strategic city during the day. “Mariupol and Volnovakha are ours! The two cities are under enemy pressure but they are holding on”however, said Pavlo Kirilenko, governor of the Donetsk region, on his Facebook page.