Ukraine, Russia updates: Accusations traded over Kherson shelling
Ukraine news from June 8: Deadly fighting persists in southern Ukraine after the collapse of the vast Soviet-era Nova Kakhovka dam.
This blog is now closed, thanks for joining us. These were the updates on the Russia-Ukraine war on Thursday, June 8:
This blog is now closed, thanks for joining us. These were the updates on the Russia-Ukraine war on Thursday, June 8:
- Russia and Ukraine accuse one another of shelling flood-hit areas after the Nova Kakhovka dam collapsed.
- The warring sides say people on both banks of the Dnipro river have died as a result of the breach, while Ukraine claims Russian shelling has killed at least one person.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has visited flooded areas amid warnings of the dangers posed by floating mines, the spread of disease and hazardous chemicals in the floodwaters.
- Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu says Moscow’s forces repelled a large-scale overnight attempt by Ukraine to break through the Zaporizhia region.
Satellite images show Kherson province flooding
ICEYE’s flood data analysis details the flood extent and depth and shows that several towns and villages along the Dnipro river (Nova Kakhovka, Antonivka, Oleshky, Solontsi, and other areas) have been either partially or completely flooded.
ICEYE owns and operates the largest constellation of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites. By combining satellite imagery with auxiliary ground-level information, the company delivers accurate insight into the extent and depth of major flood events around the world, in near real time.Satellite images show before and after images of flooding in Nova Kakhovka
Microsatellite maker ICEYE has released flood data analysis showing the extent and depth of the flooding along the Dnipro river and throughout the Kherson region.
Below are its images of the impact on Nova Kakhovka, a port city on the breached dam’s southern bank.
Reservoir water still cooling Ukraine nuclear plant near destroyed dam: IAEA
The UN’s nuclear watchdog says Europe’s largest atomic power plant is continuing to receive water from a reservoir after its dam was breached, refuting the dam operator’s assertion that the reservoir could no longer supply water to the nuclear facility.
“Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is continuing to pump cooling water from the Kakhovka Reservoir,” the International Atomic Energy Agency said in a statement.
Eight people injured in two missile strikes in central Ukraine: Governor
Two missiles have hit sites near the city of Uman in central Ukraine, injuring eight people, the regional governor says.
Ihor Taburets, governor of the Cherkasy region, wrote on the Telegram messaging app that the missiles hit an industrial site and a car wash in the evening. He said two of the injured were seriously hurt, according to preliminary information.
Pictures posted on his Telegram channel showed emergency teams combing through sites largely reduced to rubble with smoke rising in the background.
UK’s Sunak: We must show Putin that Ukraine support won’t wane
Sunak says Ukraine’s supporters needed to send a strong signal to Putin that their backing for Kyiv will not weaken as the war goes on.
“The more we can put in place support for Ukraine, not just in the here and now, that support that will last for a time and for years to come, I think it sends a strong signal to [Putin] that there is no point in trying to wait us out,” the UK prime minister said at a joint press conference with Biden.
“We’re not going anywhere. We will be here for as long as it takes. And hopefully that will speed up the calculation in his mind that he should withdraw his forces.”
US will have funding needed to continue Ukraine support: Biden
Biden says he believes the US will have the necessary funding to support Ukraine “for as long as it takes” as Russia continues its invasion.
Russia says it will respond to Romania cutting embassy staff
The Russian Foreign Ministry says it will respond to what it called Romania’s “hostile” decision to reduce Russia’s diplomatic presence in the country.
Romania’s Foreign Ministry said earlier that it was ordering Russia to cut 51 of its embassy staff, citing poor bilateral relations over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“We view this decision as yet another hostile attack, leading to the further degradation of bilateral relations, which are already in a deplorable state due to Bucharest’s efforts,” Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
Top Kremlin official visits occupied Ukrainian flood zone
Sergey Kiriyenko, deputy head of the Kremlin administration, has travelled to the Kherson region to get a picture of the flooding there.
“To objectively assess the situation, together [with Kiriyenko], we drove around the flooded territories of Hola Prystan and Oleshky. This is where the situation is most tense,” the Moscow-appointed governor of Kherson, Andrey Alexeyenko, said on his Telegram channel.
In attached videos, Kiriyenko can be seen inspecting the flooded area and talking to a person affected.
‘Ukraine’s MH17 case boils down to nonsense’: Russian ambassador
Kyiv has told the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that Moscow violated a United Nations “anti-terrorism” treaty by equipping and funding pro-Russian forces, including militias that shot down Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17, killing all 298 passengers and crew in 2014.
Last November, a Dutch court convicted two Russians and a Ukrainian separatist in absentia for their role and sentenced them to life in prison. It found that Russia had “overall control” over the separatist forces.
Russia rejected what it called the “scandalous” decision by the Dutch court. Russia’s ambassador-at-large Gennady Kuzmin told the ICJ that the Dutch judgement was biased against separatist forces in the Donetsk region of Ukraine.
“At the end of the day, Ukraine’s MH17 case boils down to nonsense,” Kuzmin said.
The court adjourned on Thursday but will hold two more days of hearings next week where Ukraine and Russia can react to each others’ submissions.
Russia accuses Ukraine of ‘blatant lies’ about Crimea discrimination
Russia has denied Ukrainian accusations that it discriminates against ethnic Tatars and Ukrainians in Crimea, accusing Kyiv instead of “blatant lies” at the UN’s top court.
Ukraine has asked The Hague-based International Court of Justice (ICJ) to order Russia to halt alleged discrimination against the Tatar ethnic group in Crimea, a Ukrainian peninsula occupied by Russia since 2014.
“Ukraine is constantly turning to blatant lies and false accusations levelled against the Russian Federation,” the Russian ambassador to the Netherlands, Alexander Shulgin, said at the second day of hearings at the ICJ.
Veteran Russian rights campaigner Orlov goes on trial for discrediting army
One of Russia’s longest-serving and most respected human rights campaigners has gone on trial, facing the prospect of three years in jail if convicted of repeatedly discrediting Russia’s armed forces, his organisation has said.
Oleg Orlov has since 1999 been one of the leaders of Memorial, which won a share of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022 a year after being banned and dissolved in Russia.
Orlov, who came to prominence by opposing Soviet totalitarianism, told the independent Moscow Times last month that campaigners like him were to some extent following the path of anti-communist dissidents of the Cold War era.
Orlov had already been fined for holding anti-war banners in public. The new charges are based on an article he wrote denouncing Russia for waging the conflict in Ukraine.
Ukraine dam’s reservoir water can no longer cool nuclear plant reactors: Operator
The reservoir that had been created by the Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine can no longer supply water to cool reactors at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, the dam’s operator says.
Ukrhydroenergo’s chief executive, Igor Syrota, said the water level was “below the critical point of 12.7 metres” (42 feet), meaning it could no longer supply “the ponds at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station to cool the plant”.
NATO chief urges speedy Ukraine aid after dam breach
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has urged members of the military alliance to speed up humanitarian assistance to Ukraine after the destruction of a major dam.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba briefed NATO ambassadors via video link on the devastation caused by the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam.
Stoltenberg told the meeting that “the consequences for thousands of people and for the environment are dramatic, and he urged Allies to provide support expeditiously,” NATO said in a statement.
“Allies expressed strong solidarity with Ukraine, and many are already providing critical aid, including water filters, pumps, generators, and shelter equipment,” it said.
South Africa is open to hosting peace talks
South Africa is open to hosting talks between Russia and Ukraine, as Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed an African peace mission to end the war.
“We must be receptive to the possibility of South Africa hosting the peace summit here,” Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, a minister in President Cyril Ramaphosa’s office, told journalists in Pretoria.
“If we are part of the initiative for peace and a venue for a summit is sought, the first place you look is within your backyard”.
Ramaphosa said last month that Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had agreed to receive a six-member African peace team, which is expected to launch this month.
Earlier Thursday, Ramaphosa’s office said the president had spoken with Putin.
WHO rushes emergency supplies to Ukraine
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has rushed emergency supplies to Ukraine after the breach of the Kakhovka dam, which led to widespread flooding.
“The impact of the region’s water supply sanitation systems and public health services cannot be underestimated,” WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press briefing.
“The WHO has rushed in to support the authorities and healthcare workers in preventive measures against waterborne diseases and to improve disease surveillance.”
Asked specifically about cholera, WHO technical officer Teresa Zakaria said the risk of an outbreak was present because the pathogen exists in the environment, adding that the WHO was working with Ukraine’s health ministry to ensure that vaccines can be imported if needed.
Flooding in Kherson has forced Russians to retreat: Ukraine
Flooding due to the Kakhovka dam breach has forced Russian troops to retreat by 5 to 15km (3 to 9 miles) in the Kherson region, Ukraine’s military says.
A spokeswoman for its southern command, Natalia Humeniuk, told Ukrainian television the redeployment had “practically halved” Russian shelling in the region.
Ammonia pipeline blast will affect grain deal: Kremlin
The Kremlin says a blast on an ammonia pipeline will have a “negative” effect on talks to renew the Black Sea grain export deal.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters: “It is another thing that really complicates the situation from the point of view of extending the deal.”
On Wednesday, Moscow said a Ukrainian sabotage group had blown up a section of the Togliatti-Odesa pipeline, which Russia used to export ammonia before it invaded Ukraine.
Ukrainian officials have accused Russian forces of firing at the pipeline.
The resumption of Russia’s ammonia exports through the pipeline is one of Moscow’s conditions to continue with the grain deal, which allows Ukraine to export farm products from its Black Sea ports. It is due to expire in July.
Zelenskyy thanks rescue workers during visit to Kherson
Zelenskyy visited Kherson amid evacuations after the destruction of the Kakhovka dam on Tuesday.
On Twitter, Zelenskyy thanked rescue workers and said: “From the Government and the State Emergency Service to the regional authorities and local communities, everyone is involved to the maximum extent possible to save and protect as many people as possible. And I thank everyone who saves and helps! Let’s take care of each other and Ukraine.”
Kherson region.
From the Government and the State Emergency Service to the regional authorities and local communities, everyone is involved to the maximum extent possible to save and protect as many people as possible.
And I thank everyone who saves and helps! Let's take care of… pic.twitter.com/TwK0uI14nm— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) June 8, 2023
Russia’s Shoigu says troops repelled a Ukrainian attack in Zaporizhzhia
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu says his forces have repelled a large-scale overnight attempt by Ukrainian troops to break through the Zaporizhzhia region.
Shoigu said Russian soldiers repelled four Ukrainian attacks and Kyiv’s forces were forced to retreat “with heavy losses”.
“At 1:30am today [22:30 GMT on Wednesday], the enemy attempted to break through our defences in the Zaporizhzhia direction with forces from the 47th Mechanised Brigade numbering up to 1,500 men and 150 armoured vehicles,” Shoigu said in a statement.
“The enemy was detected in time by our reconnaissance forces and a preventative strike was delivered by our artillery and aviation forces and using anti-tank weapons.”
He added that Ukraine lost 30 tanks, 11 armoured infantry vehicles and up to 350 soldiers.
At least one dead and eight wounded in Kherson: Ukraine
At least one person has been killed and eight people wounded when Russian forces shelled Kherson in “targeted strikes” during evacuation efforts, Ukraine’s prosecutor general says.
“The shelling began precisely during the evacuation of citizens whose homes were flooded,” Ukraine’s interior ministry said in a statement.
“And it continues to prevent Ukraine from saving the most valuable – human lives.”
A Reuters news agency reporter in Kherson said he could hear what appeared to be artillery fire but could not immediately provide any details.
Kherson lies on the Dnipro River, about 60km (37 miles) downstream from the destroyed Nova Kakhovka dam.
Earlier in the day, Russia accused Ukrainian forces of shelling rescue workers in Russian-occupied parts of the Kherson region.
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Ukrainian drones attacked two settlements in Belgorod: Governor
The governor of Russia’s Belgorod region said Ukrainian drones had attacked two settlements in the border region.
On Telegram, Vyacheslav Gladkov said, “As a result of the UAV [unmanned aerial vehicle] attack in the village of Vyazovoe, there is one victim. A man grazed cattle on the outskirts of the village, as a result of an uncontrolled fall of a drone, he received shrapnel wounds to his upper and lower extremities and chest. The victim independently arrived at the Krasnoyarzhskaya Central District Hospital, all the necessary medical assistance was provided.”
The Russian border region has come under repeated attacks in recent weeks.
UK announces new sanctions package against Belarus
Britain announced a new sanctions package against Belarus for its role in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“This new package ratchets up the economic pressure on President Lukashenko and his regime, which actively facilitates the Russian war effort and ignores Ukraine’s territorial integrity,” British foreign secretary James Cleverly said in a statement.
The new package includes banning the import of gold, cement, wood and rubber from Belarus and blocking exports to Belarus from Britain of banknotes and machinery, as well as materials that could be used to produce chemical and biological weapons.
Belarus is Russia’s staunchest ally, allowing the use of its territory to launch Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Germany to donate air defence systems to Slovakia
Germany will donate two MANTIS short-range air defence systems to Slovakia to help bolster its eastern border with Ukraine, the Slovak defence ministry said.
The first of the systems will be delivered within weeks, and Slovakia will receive them without charge as part of NATO efforts to boost defences along eastern flank members.
Evacuations ongoing in Kherson: AJ correspondent
Al Jazeera’s Charles Stratford, reporting from Kherson, said evacuations are “ongoing” after widespread flooding following the breach at the Kakhovka dam on Tuesday.
“We have seen a steady stream of boats going out into the flooded affected areas, bringing people out. We were also on a boat earlier today and saw some of what authorities here tell us there are around 1,000 people that are either trapped or are refusing to leave,” Stratford said.
“They [Ukrainian authorities] say that water levels here are relatively similar to how they were yesterday, but certainly, in some areas, we have seen what we believe to be a rise in that level.”
Stratford said they had heard more shelling today than in the last 48 hours, the majority of which is Ukrainian, but the military is “increasingly nervous” that there could be shelling from Russian forces.