Ukrainian authorities urged the civilian population to urgently flee from the eastern city of Sloviansk in the face of advancing Russian forces in an operation to control the Donbass region.
Sloviansk has faced intense Russian shelling in recent days, with at least two dead and seven injured in an attack on a market on Tuesday.
The city had a population of 100,000 before the war.
Pavlo Kyrylenko, the governor of the Donetsk region, which includes Sloviansk, accused Russia of “deliberately targeting civilian concentrations”.
“This is pure and simple terrorism,” he said on Telegram.
In a message carried by the Ukrainian media, Kyrylenko said that “the main advice is to get out of the region”.
“There hasn’t been a bomb-free day this week,” he said on Tuesday night, adding that the city was now within range of Russian multiple rocket launchers.
“The enemy is bombing chaotically, the attacks are aimed at destroying the local population,” he warned. “Then again, my main advice is to leave.”
In Moscow, the defense ministry said Russian forces had attacked the city of Kharkov with “high-precision” weapons in the past 24 hours, killing up to 150 Ukrainian soldiers.
Kyiv said other areas were also hit by missiles and artillery fire.
At the same time, Ukraine’s allies in Switzerland pledged on Tuesday to support the country in a recovery that could be long and costly.
After two days of talks, representatives from around 40 countries agreed on the need for reform to increase transparency and fight corruption. Rebuilding Ukraine could cost $750 billion.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet called for an end to the suffering of civilians, which she described as “unbearable” and criticized “meaningless war”.
Bachelet said that as of July 3, more than 10,000 civilians had been killed or injured in Ukraine, including 335 children.
He also noted that the actual numbers could be much higher.
Abandoning its initial goal of taking Kiev in the face of Ukrainian resistance, Russia focused its efforts on maintaining control of Donbass, a region in the east of the country formed by Lugansk and Donetsk, which Russian forces had almost completely captured. South West. , attack scenario.
The fall of Lysychansk on Sunday, a week after the withdrawal of the Ukrainian army from neighboring Severodonetsk, paved the way for the Russian advance into Donetsk.
On Tuesday, the Russians tried to take control of the small town of Siversk after several days of bombing.
“There is intense fighting in the Lugansk region near Lysychansk,” said Lugansk governor Sergei Gaiday.
In the southwest, in the Kherson region, Russian troops sent helicopters and artillery to repel Ukrainian counterattacks.
source: Noticias
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