Ukraine accuses Russia of bombing key infrastructure in retaliation for advancing troops from kyiv | International

Several key infrastructures for the distribution of electricity and piped water in eastern Ukraine were bombed as night fell on Sunday. The kyiv government was quick to accuse Moscow of the blackout that has affected several regions and of carrying out attacks in retaliation for the positions it has lost in recent days on the battlefield. Those attacks come after the withdrawal of Russian forces from northeastern Ukraine as local troops stage the biggest frontline counteroffensive in six months. In those places “there are no military installations. The goal is to deprive people of light and heating, ”Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky denounced on his Twitter account. On Monday, the Russian Defense Ministry confirmed that its forces are carrying out airstrikes in the Kharkov region, the Russian state news agency RIA reported.

The bombings have taken place, not only in Kharkov, but also in two other eastern regions: Zaporizhia and Dnipro. In Kharkiv, power station number five in the suburb of Podvirky, southwest of the regional capital of the same name, was badly damaged. The city tried this Monday to recover normality at dawn on the 201st day since Russia invaded Ukraine, but in the early morning the electricity supply had not been restored in 20% of the city, according to local authorities on the network. Social Telegram. Kharkov, the country’s second largest city, had a population of one and a half million until the invasion began and is the scene of attacks almost daily. In neighborhoods like Nemyshlianskiy there are houses that right now have electricity but not running water, the neighbors have confirmed to the special envoy of EL PAÍS. Some inhabitants take it philosophically and almost as an anecdote to have had to start the week in the dark at home and without being able to shower.

Meanwhile, Ukrzaliznytsia, the national railway company and the country’s main employer with 230,000 workers, sings victory on its social networks because it has managed to maintain the main connections with hardly any train delays.

flowers and hugs

The Kharkov region, in the northeast, is these days the spearhead from which local troops have launched the largest counteroffensive on the battlefield so far in the war in early September. A Kremlin official who allegedly carries out his duties in this region has acknowledged that the number of Ukrainian soldiers currently exceeds Russian and pro-Russian militiamen eight times, reports the Reuters agency. Speaking to the Russian state television channel Rossiya-24, this official, Vitaly Ganchev, also explained that some 5,000 civilians had been evacuated to the Russian side of the border after the Moscow authorities asked the citizens of the areas that kyiv was freeing them to leave Ukraine.

On Sunday, the Russian Defense Ministry released a map showing how its forces had withdrawn from almost the entire Kharkov region. The day before, the same Ministry had assured that the withdrawal of its military is part of its plan. “In order to achieve the objectives of the special military operation for the liberation of Donbas, the decision was made to regroup the Russian troops deployed in Balakleya and Izium to intensify efforts in the direction of Donetsk,” said its spokesman, Igor Konashenkov, who described withdrawal as “distraction measures”.

kyiv claims to have recovered some thirty towns in the southeast of the Kharkov province in recent days. Among those places that in recent months were in the hands of Moscow, there are some strategic points for the logistics of the invading troops, such as Izium or Kupiansk.

The local authorities, the neighbors and the military themselves are recording videos of the towns that they are liberating from the invader. Citizens, who in many cases have lived under Russian troops for more than six months, are seen welcoming the soldiers with bouquets of flowers, kisses and hugs. With the area closed to reporters, that is largely the only sign there is so far of the Ukrainian Army’s advance on the ground.

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