At Least 17 Civilians Killed After Russian Attacks; kyiv claims to be ready for a counteroffensive

First modification: 04/28/2023 – 2:50 p.m.

Ukraine is preparing for a major counteroffensive after more than a year of invasion, but the Kremlin does not give up on its occupationist aspirations.

At least 20 cruise missiles and two Russian drones shook Ukrainian territory on April 28, attacks that left at least 17 fatalities, in the largest Russian onslaught in recent weeks.

One of the bombings hit Kiev, the first assault on the capital in the last two months, where the Ukrainian Air Force intercepted 11 projectiles and two unmanned aircraft, the city government confirmed.

Most of the deaths occurred in the center of the country, when the missiles hit a nine-story residential building, exactly in the city of Uman, about 245 kilometers from the Ukrainian capital. In that assault alone, 14 civilians lost their lives, including three minors, the Interior Ministry said.

Being on the verge of death has become a constant for thousands of Ukrainians. Halyna, a resident of the impacted building, said that she and her husband were covered in glass by the explosion. After observing the flames, she left her home and went looking for a friend in a nearby apartment.

“I was calling her on the phone, but she did not answer. I even called her doorbell, but she still didn’t answer, ”she said after explaining that she used the spare keys to the place and found her lifeless.

Another of the confirmed victims was a 75-year-old woman who lived in a neighboring building and suffered internal bleeding due to the powerful shock wave of the explosion, described the emergency personnel who moved to the scene.

A 31-year-old woman and her two-year-old daughter were also killed in another attack in the city of Dnipro, regional governor Serhii Lysak confirmed.

In addition, the Police indicated that at least 17 people were injured. Among them, three children who were rescued from the rubble of structures destroyed by bombs in Moscow.

These attacks occur far from the front lines of battle with the kyiv forces. During the 14 months of war, the Kremlin military indiscriminately hit vast civilian areas, although they deny the accusations.

Ukraine is “ready” for the expected counteroffensive against Russia

Forces from the attacked nation are finishing preparations for a large-scale operation aimed at pushing back Russian troops and retaking Kremlin-occupied territories, Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said Friday.

“We are ready in a high percentage (…) As soon as there is the will of God, the weather and a decision from the commanders, we will do it,” he assured in a virtual press conference.

Since last March, kyiv announced a counter-offensive before the end of spring, but has avoided giving an exact date as it waited for crucial military equipment promised by its Western NATO allies.

But the wait would have ended after Thursday, April 27, the general secretary of the political-military alliance, Jens Stoltenberg, assured that the organization had already delivered more than 98% of the promised combat vehicles. Among them, 1,550 armored vehicles, 230 war tanks and “large amounts of ammunition.”

kyiv hopes that its planned counteroffensive will change the dynamics of the conflict, which has generated the greatest collapse of the European order after the Cold War.

Russia has seized swathes of Ukrainian territory in the east, south and southeast. And the Ukrainian army vows to recapture all of its towns, including the Donetsk and Lugansk regions, Kherson and Zaporizhia, which Vladimir Putin’s government annexed in criticized referendums last September, and the Crimea province, similarly attached in 2014.

Currently, some of the bloodiest battles take place in the eastern city of Bakhmut, where mercenaries from the Wagner Group claim they control 80% of the territory, but the Army resists and promises to push them back. All in the midst of operations that would have a green light with the arrival of better weather and after thousands of Ukrainian troops were trained by Western countries.

With Reuters and AP