The Ukrainian military accused Russia on Friday of attacking Serpents Island with phosphorus bombs a day after the country’s forces withdrew from the scene.
Valerii Zaluzhny, Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, told Telegram that the plane took off from a base in Crimea and said, “Russian Air Force SU-30 planes carried out two attacks with phosphorus bombs on Snake Island.” .
The Russians left the island on Thursday, and the Moscow government said the departure was a “goodwill gesture” to show it was willing not to interfere with the UN’s efforts to facilitate Ukrainian grain exports.
According to Zaluzhny, the bombings on Snake Island are proof that Russia “did not respect its own declarations”.
Phosphorus bombs are incendiary weapons that are prohibited for use against civilians but not against military targets.
Since the beginning of the occupation of its territory, Ukraine has repeatedly accused Russia of using phosphorus bombs against civilians, but Moscow has always refused to use these devices.
Located in the northeast of the Black Sea in an area with important commercial shipping routes, the strategically important Snake Island has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance after its defenders refused to surrender via an internationalized radio message. reputed.
US rules out alleged Russian ‘goodwill’
The US Department of Defense denied on Friday that Russia’s withdrawal from Serpents Island was related to a “goodwill gesture”.
“We attribute this development to the fact that the Ukrainians have been very successful in exerting significant pressure on the Russians, including using their recently acquired Harpoon missiles to attack a supply ship,” said a US Department of Defense official.
In his view, the Ukrainians made it very difficult for the Russians to continue their operations there and made them very vulnerable to Ukrainian attacks. “So, of course, that’s why Russia left the island,” he said.
“Russian Terror”
In a video speech late Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the missile attacks on a residential and entertainment center on the outskirts of Russia’s port city of Odessa on Friday, which left 21 dead and dozens injured.
“Three missiles hit an ordinary residential building, a nine-story building where no one was hiding weapons, military equipment or ammunition, as Russian propagandists and officials always talk about these attacks,” Zelensky said. Said.
The Ukrainian president described the attack as “deliberate and purposeful Russian terrorism” and stressed that it was not “mistakes or an accidental missile attack”.
Zelensky also said he is grateful to the United States, and personally to US President Joe Biden, for the new Ukraine support package announced Friday, which includes NASAMS surface-to-air missile systems.
“An anti-aircraft missile complex that will significantly strengthen our air defense. We are working hard for this supply. This package, worth $820 million in total, includes artillery ammunition and radars in addition to NASAMS,” Zelensky said. .
source: Noticias
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