Ukraine says Russian attack on Kiev killed journalist during UN visit

Radio Liberty’s journalist Vira Hyrych was killed in a Russian attack that hit Kiev on the day of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ visit. The radio station he worked for confirmed the 22nd death of a journalist during the Russian occupation. Previously, the Mayor of Kyiv Vitaliy Klitschko explained The body of a person was found in the rubble of a demolished apartment building today. The attack shook the UN delegation.

“He was going to bed when a Russian ballistic missile hit his apartment in central Kiev,” said Oleg Nikolenko, spokesman for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry.

s death Hyrych He was lamented by his colleagues and politicians. “Oh my God! I knew Vera personally. We’ve been in touch these two months. [de guerra]. He asked me to comment, he asked me to participate in broadcasts,” said Anton Gerashchenko, c.Advisor to the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine. “The crimes of the Russians will not go unpunished,” said Andriy Yermak, the Chief of the Ukrainian Presidential Staff, talking about the attack that killed Hyrych.

The journalist’s colleague on the radio, Oleksandr Demchenko, Hyrych Wash it. He posted a photo of the journalist’s car, which was damaged after the attack, and took it to the reports. “I don’t know how to say what a wonderful person he is.”

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Today the war has entered its 65th day. throughout the invasion Russian Other journalists were also killed on Ukrainian soil beginning on February 24. Moreover HyrychAccording to a survey by the Ukrainian government’s Broadcasting and Television Committee, 21 more journalists died as a result of the bombings while they were covering the war or while they were not working.

As of April 27, the committee counted 243 attacks against journalists and media outlets. These are murders, injuries, disappearances, kidnappings, bombings of journalists and television towers, threats, cybercrimes.

Hyrych had been working in the Kyiv office of the radio since February 1, 2018. “Before that, he worked on major Ukrainian television channels,” said the company, which mourned his death and said he would “remember the journalist as a bright and kind person.” . , a true professional”.

According to the mayor, the affected building was new and had few residents. At least five people have been rescued and ten injured in the attack so far, according to the latest update from Ukraine’s capital city hall.

“Kyiv is still under enemy fire,” commented Klitschko, adding that “yesterday’s attack is proof of that.” Kyiv has been in a more relaxed mood since Russia announced in late March that it would radically reduce military activity in the region and shift its focus to eastern Ukraine.

The Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed that it carried out an attack on Kiev. “The high-precision long-range air weapons of the Russian Air Force destroyed the production buildings of the Artem rocket company and the space industry in the city of Kyiv,” the statement said. The text does not mention attacks on residential buildings.

In total, Russia said it had carried out “975 fire missions in one night” on Ukrainian territory, killing at least 280 military personnel. Today, the Russian Defense announced that it launched a missile into the Black Sea from a submarine. The ministry did not say whether this was the first missile attack from a submarine during the conflict in Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a video released last night that five missiles hit the capital. And he recalled that this was “just after our talks in Kiev ended”, referring to the meeting with Guterres.

“And that says a lot about Russia’s true stance towards global institutions. It’s about the Russian leadership’s efforts to humiliate the UN and everything the Organization stands for. Therefore, it requires a strong response,” Zelensky said. Said.

For the president, the attacks “prove once again that we cannot let our guard down.” “We cannot think the war is over. We still have to fight. We still have to drive out the invaders.”

Azovstal’s evacuation

The evacuation of civilians from the Azovstal complex is planned “in the near future”, according to the Mariupol City Council. The body stated that the information was sent by the Office of the President of Ukraine. The draw is expected today.

Yesterday, Azovstal, where civilians are refugees and Ukrainian soldiers are resisting Russian forces, was the target of another attack. “Russian invaders continue to block our units in Mariupol, near Azovstal,” the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said today.

Zelensky said yesterday that he believes “it is possible to organize an evacuation mission with the help of the UN”.

“Ukraine is ready for these steps. However, the Russian side also needs to deal with this issue without cynicism and do what it says,” he said, adding that despite Russia’s ceasefire promise, the attacks continue in the region. “Russia’s bombing of Mariupol did not stop even while the UN Secretary General was negotiating in Moscow.”

The UN said that intense discussions are ongoing for the evacuation of people from Azovstal.

Observation

The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine said that in the city of Izium in the Kharkov region, Russian forces are focused on the reconnaissance of the region, “identifying the defensive positions of the Defense Forces units and destroying them with artillery fire.”

On the outskirts of Kharkov, Ukraine’s second-largest city, Russia maintains its positions at close range and is “trying to inflict fire damage on units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in certain areas,” the ministry said.

The Ukrainian Defense also notes that Belarus’ “border protection” with Ukraine has been strengthened. Belarusians are allies of the Russian government.

Today, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced that “the first group of Belarusian military personnel has completed their training and passed the tests at the joint training and combat training center in the Nizhny Novgorod region in Russia.” “The personnel of the tank unit of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus were trained for a month.

theft of wheat

Several Ukrainian officials accused Russia of stealing tons of wheat produced and stored in the southern and eastern regions of the region. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine reported that “grain looting from the Kherson region” and the blockade of Ukrainian ports “threatened world food security”.

The same accusation was made by the mayor of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov. “We have released a video of a convoy of more than 50 trucks removing our wheat from our land. We do not know where they are taking it,” Fedorov said.

In an official note, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine made the same accusation, saying that “Russian invaders are killing residents of Ukrainian villages.” […] In addition to the receipt of more than 60 tons of wheat in cargo trucks stolen from the agricultural cooperative in the city of Kamianka-Dniprovska in the Zaporizhzhia region”.

Before the war, Ukraine was one of the world’s largest wheat producers and ranked fourth globally. Russia is the world leader in production and the two countries together represent approximately 30% of the world grain trade.

(with AFP and Ansa)