Volodymy Zelensky bangs his fist on the table. In the aftermath of new Russian strikes which hit the port cities of Odessa and Mykolaiv, the Ukrainian president denounced, Thursday, July 20, the action of the “Russian terrorists” Who “continue their attempts to destroy life” in his country. These latest attacks, which took place for the third consecutive night, left two people dead and at least 20 injured. Follow our live.
Paris can grant refugee status to deserters from the Russian army. “Russians fleeing mobilization for the war in Ukraine and those mobilized who have deserted can obtain refugee status”estimated the National Court of Asylum (CNDA) in a press release, because “A Russian national called up as part of this mobilization is likely to commit, directly or indirectly, war crimes”.
Very high risk navigation in the Black Sea. kyiv retaliates, adopting exactly the same measure as Russia the day before. The Russian Ministry of Defense had announced that from Thursday, “all ships sailing in the waters of the Black Sea bound for Ukrainian ports will be considered as ships potentially carrying military cargo”. After requesting the establishment of “military patrols” naval vessels under UN mandate, kyiv announces that it will consider all ships traveling in the Black Sea to Russian ports or occupied territories in the same way. With “all associated risks” as of Friday, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
A drone attack in Crimea. Sergei Aksionov, the governor of the peninsula separated from Ukraine in 2014, said on Telegram on Thursday that a “enemy drone strike” had damaged “four administrative buildings” in the northwest of this region, killing a teenage girl. kyiv has not claimed responsibility for this attack, a new incident in a long series in Crimea after the explosion on the Kerch bridge on Monday, and the fire at a military base on Wednesday.
The Belarusian Red Cross accused of kidnapping Ukrainian children. Dzmitry Shautsou, the director of this organization, created an international outcry after declaring on the country’s public television that its teams were actively involved in the reception of Ukrainian children living in areas occupied by Russia.