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A deadly Russian strike on a crowded supermarket in Kharkiv has killed 14 people and wounded dozens more.
Ukrainian prosecutors said the death toll is still rising on Sunday morning after two guided bombs hit the Epicentr DIY hypermarket on Saturday afternoon.
The strikes caused a massive fire which sent a column of thick, black smoke billowing hundreds of metres into the air.
Forty-three people were injured, the local prosecutors’ office said, adding that ten of the twelve dead had still not been identified.
Andriy Kudinov, director of the suburban shopping centre, told local media the hardware store was full of shoppers buying items for their summer cottages when the attack happened, while Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said about 120 people had been in the store when the bombs struck.
It took 16 hours to fully extinguish the fire at the centre, which had raged over an area of 13,000 square metres (15,548 square yards), Interior Minister Klymenko said.
The past week has seen an uptick in strikes on the city after Russian troops stormed across the border, opening a new front north of the city.
The death toll in Kharkiv attack rises to 14 as Zelenskyy warns of Russian troop movements
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned Sunday that Russia is preparing to intensify its offensive along Ukraine’s northern border, as the death toll rose to 14 in an aerial bomb attack on a large construction supplies store in the city of Kharkiv.
The bombing of Kharkiv on Saturday afternoon also left 43 injured and 16 missing, Kharkiv Gov. Oleh Syniehubov said.
In a video statement from Kharkiv, Zelenskyy said that Russia is preparing offensive actions 90 kilometers (55 miles) northwest of Ukraine’s second largest city. He said that Russians “gather another group of troops near our border.”
Macron begins the first state visit to Germany by a French president in 24 years
President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Germany Sunday for the first state visit by a French head of state in 24 years, a three-day trip meant to underline the strong ties between the European Union’s traditional leading powers.
The visit was originally meant to take place last July but was postponed at the last minute due to rioting in France following the killing of a 17-year-old by police.
Zelenskyy says Ukraine has taken back control in areas of Kharkiv region, aerial attacks continue
Ukrainian forces have secured “combat control” of areas where Russian troops entered the northeastern Kharkiv region earlier this month, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
Meanwhile, two people were killed Saturday in an aerial attack on the city of Kharkiv, which is the region’s capital, according to local officials.
Kharkiv is about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the Russian border. Moscow’s troops have in recent weeks captured villages in the area as part of a broad push, and analysts say they may be trying to get within artillery range of the city. Ukrainian authorities have evacuated more than 11,000 people from the region since the start of the offensive on May 10.
US announces $275M in new military assistance for Ukraine
The Biden administration announced on Friday an additional $275 million in military aid for Ukraine as Kyiv struggles to hold off advances by Russian troops in the Kharkiv region.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the package, which was previewed on Thursday by two U.S. officials, “is part of our efforts to help Ukraine repel Russia’s assault near Kharkiv.”
“Assistance from previous packages has already made it to the front lines, and we will move this new assistance as quickly as possible so the Ukrainian military can use it to defend their territory and protect the Ukrainian people,” Blinken said in a statement.
They escaped Russia’s deadly assault on Kharkiv – now these Ukrainians face another catastrophe
People from villages and towns around the region have been forced from their homes by fierce fighting, reports Tom Watling:
The Russian assault on the Ukraine’s northeastern region of Kharkiv threatens to leave thousands of newly-displaced civilians without homes, UN officials and aid workers have told The Independent, as the United Nations grapples with an “extremely worrying” shortage of humanitarian aid.
Why are top Russian military officials being arrested
It began last month with the arrest of a Russian deputy defense minister. Then the head of the ministry’s personnel directorate was hauled into court. This week, two more senior military officials were detained. All face charges of corruption, which they have denied.
The arrests began after President Vladimir Putin began his fifth term and shuffled his ally, longtime Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, into a new post.
Lithuanians vote in presidential election overshadowed by Russia
Lithuania holds presidential elections on Sunday, with incumbent Gitanas Nauseda expected to win after a campaign dominated by security concerns in the European Union and NATO member next door to Russia.
The Baltic nation of 2.8 million people has been a staunch ally of Ukraine since Russia‘s 2022 invasion. Like other countries in the region, it worries it could be Moscow’s next target.
Nauseda, 60, a former senior economist with Swedish banking group SEB who is not affiliated with any party, won the first round of the election on May 12 with 44% of the votes, short of the 50% he needed for an outright victory.
In the run-off, he is facing Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte, 49, from the ruling centre-right Homeland Union party that has been trailing in opinion polls. She was the only woman out of eight candidates in the first round and came second with 20%.
Polls close at 8 p.m. (1700 GMT), with results expected before midnight.
Just over half of Lithuanians believe a Russian attack is possible or even very likely, according to a ELTA/Baltijos Tyrimai poll conducted between February and March. Russia has regularly dismissed concerns that it might attack a NATO member.
Nauseda told a debate on Tuesday he sees Russia as an enemy. “Our enemies – who even call themselves our enemies, who are enemies of us and all the democratic world – are attempting to destabilise our politics, and we must do all to resist.”
Blinken will head to eastern Europe as concerns mount about Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to eastern Europe next week as concerns mount about Russia’s advances in Ukraine, potential Russian interference in neighboring Moldova and pro-Moscow legislation being promoted in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, the State Department said Friday.
Blinken will visit the Moldovan capital of Chişinau on Wednesday before attending a NATO foreign ministers meeting in Prague on Thursday and Friday.
That meeting will be the military alliance’s last major diplomatic get-together before leaders meet at a summit to celebrate NATO’s 80th anniversary in Washington in July.
Russia says its forces take over village in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region, TASS reports
Russian forces have taken over the village of Berestove in Ukraine‘s northeastern Kharkiv region, the TASS news agency cited Russia‘s defence ministry as saying on Sunday.
Reuters could not immediately verify the battlefield reports.
In pictures: Deadly Russian attack in Kharkiv
Source: independent.co.uk
