Russians kill three and injure six people in attacks on Donetsk region

Russian attacks on the Donetsk region have left three people dead and six injured, according to the statement of the National Police of Ukraine. Over the past 24 hours, police have recorded 3,826 attacks of the Russian army personnel along the front line and in residential areas.

Eight settlements were targeted: Druzhkivka, Kostiantynivka, Lyman, Mykolaivka, Pokrovsk, Zorya, Ivanopillya, and Poltavka. A total of 92 civilian objects, including 72 residential buildings, were damaged.

Russins hit the city of Pokrovsk five times. That attack resulted in the deaths of two civilians and injuries to another. One apartment building and seven private houses were damaged, along with two administrative buildings and seven garages.

In the Illynivska hromadaі , the enemy dropped two FAB-250 aerial bombs on the settlement of Zorya, killing one person and injuring another. Five private houses were damaged. Another bomb hit Poltavka, injuring a civilian and damaging nine private houses.

In the city of Druzhkivka, three strikes injured one person and damaged 11 private homes.

Moreover, Russian forces attacked Lyman with Smerch multiple rocket launchers, injuring two civilians and damaging 13 private houses, three outbuildings, two gas pipelines, and two power lines.

A FAB-250 bomb was dropped on Mykolaivka, damaging 25 private houses and disrupting communication lines. In Kostiantynivka, an enemy drone damaged a private house.

Police and the Security Service of Ukraine have initiated criminal proceedings under Article 438 (war crimes) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

ZMINA consistently reports on the ongoing international crimes in the Donetsk Oblast.

By way of background, Russia’s war against Ukraine escalated dramatically on February 24, 2022, when Russia launched a full-scale invasion into Ukrainian territory. This marked a significant intensification of hostilities that had been ongoing since 2014, following Russia’s attempt to annex the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and fights in Eastern Ukraine.  

According to the estimates of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), 10.6 million Ukrainians have been displaced due to the war. Within Ukraine, 3.7 million people are internally displaced, while 6.9 million continue to receive protection as refugees abroad.

Over 2 million homes across Ukraine have been damaged or destroyed, accounting for 10% of the country’s housing stock.

Repeated Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure leave people without electricity and heating, further complicating the already strained work of local services.

The UNHCR pointed out that mental health has also been severely affected due to the constant threat of attacks, prolonged separation from family, and cumulative trauma. Children are particularly vulnerable – 1.5 million are at risk of long-term mental health consequences.

Inside Ukraine, 12.7 million people need humanitarian assistance.

The impact of the war on the economy is significant – agricultural and industrial hubs in the east have been destroyed, and approximately 30% of pre-war jobs have been lost.

Previously, the World Bank published the Fourth Report on Damage and Needs Assessment (Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment, RDNA4) resulting from the full-scale invasion of Russians into Ukraine.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated during his press conference that countries providing security guarantees to Ukraine will lead the country’s reconstruction, responding to a question from Hong Kong television about China’s role in Ukraine’s restoration.

Earlier, Aliona Shkrum, the First Deputy Minister of Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine, discussed the extent of Ukraine’s destruction during the war in a 24/7 newscast.

According to Shkrum, the full-scale war has caused $524 billion in damages to Ukraine since it began. She emphasised that Ukraine will use this comprehensive damage assessment to pursue reparations from Russia in international courts.

The Ukrainian government has identified nine priority areas for reconstruction this year, which include:

• Energy infrastructure
• Transportation
• Housing
• Education
• Healthcare
• Demining
• Water and sanitation
• Private sector support

Shkrum pointed out that the housing sector alone has suffered extensive damage, with Russian attacks destroying or damaging 320,000 private homes, 37,000 apartment buildings, and 700 dormitories. She also added that, as a result of the hostilities, the homes of one in ten Ukrainian citizens were destroyed.

3,300 educational institutions in Ukraine have been destroyed or damaged.

Ukrainian experts point out that the US is trying to capitulate Ukraine. Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff said the US administration has an idea to “get down the framework for a peace agreement”. Zelenskyy expressed hopes for a “meaningful meeting”. 

Meanwhile, the US has pulled its military and intelligence support for Ukraine, cutting the country off from crucial satellite imaging.

In an interview with Yanina Sokolova, the independent Ukrainian journalist Vitaliy Portnikov expressed confidence that US President Donald Trump has stopped military aid to Ukraine to mask his inability to influence Putin.

Analysts at the US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) have reported that the US suspension of intelligence sharing will undermine Ukraine’s ability to advance and defend itself on the battlefield while exacerbating challenges in protecting civilians from Russian strikes. Five senior Western and Ukrainian officials and military officers, confirmed by the ISW, that the step of Donald Trump has aided Russian forces in making advances on the battlefield.

An unnamed officer told Time that the suspension has deprived Ukrainian forces of the ability to use “some of their best weapons systems”.

A Ukrainian government source said that the suspension most impacted Ukrainian operations in Russia’s Kursk Oblast, with Ukrainian forces losing the ability to detect Russian aircraft approaching Ukraine. This has compromised their ability to warn both civilians and soldiers of incoming Russian strikes.

ISW stated that it cannot independently verify statements about the effects on the ground of the US intelligence sharing suspension.