Civilian structures continue to be targeted in the war in Ukraine. This time Kiev reported that a shower of Russian missiles hit the two main universities in Mikolaiv, while still digging in the rubble of Vinnytsa, after a raid on a commercial building and a parking lot. In the city in the center of the country, apparently far from the front line, there are dozens of deaths, including children. And children are paying a very high price in this conflict: over a thousand have been killed or injured in less than five months. The army’s grip on Mykolaiv has never relaxed, even after the start of the offensive in the Donbass, to deny the Ukrainians access to the sea. In the port city, the day began with an attack on two of the most important universities. “At least ten rockets”, said Governor Vitaliy Kim, launching an appeal “to the universities of all democratic countries to define Russia for what it is, a terrorist country”.
At least four were injured and buildings damaged. The death toll is dramatically higher in Vinnytsia. In the aftermath of the missile attack, the police announced that they had identified 19 of the 23 people killed, and among them are 3 children aged 4, 7 and 8. One was visiting a medical center, another was waiting for a relative in a car in the parking lot. And the situation is likely to worsen further, because there are over 180 injured and dozens of people are still considered missing. We continue to dig to find them. But as always happens, Moscow’s version of what happened is different. In Vinnytsia, the defense ministry said, “Kalibr precision missiles launched from the sea hit an officers’ house”, where a meeting with “foreign arms suppliers” was taking place. And all of them have been “eliminated”. The raids on Mykolaiv and Vinnytsia kept the pressure on the Ukrainians high, while on the main Donetsk front the Russians continued to advance west. According to British intelligence, once they have captured the city of Siversk, their next target will likely be Bakhmut, some forty kilometers further south.
The latter has been hit by new air strikes, as has Kramatorsk. However, the defense forces have received a new and important military supply: the first sophisticated M270 rocket systems have arrived, which will further enrich the arsenal of long-range artillery supplied by the Western allies. Weapons capable of making counter-offensives on the territories occupied by the Russians more effective, thanks to their precision. With these premises, the war could continue for a long time, so much so that the United States has asked its compatriots to “leave Ukraine immediately”. The dead, after almost five months, are already tens of thousands, including the military. But what is impressive is the number of children killed. According to the Kiev prosecutor’s office there are at least 352, while the injured are at least 657, for a total of one thousand. In general, the confirmed civilian victims are at least five thousand, but according to the UN they could be many more.
One of the British volunteers captured by the Russian army in Ukraine, Paul Urey, died of chronic illness in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, the pro-Russian authorities said. Tass reports it. “He died from previously diagnosed diseases and stress on July 10,” Ombudsman of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, Darya Morozova, told the Donetsk News Agency. According to Morozova, Urey – who was being held in a local penal facility – had been diagnosed with several chronic diseases. Furthermore, he added, the man was depressed because of London’s indifference to his whereabouts. “For our part, we have provided Paul Urey with the necessary medical treatment despite the gravity of his accusation,” he noted.
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