The strike late Saturday night destroyed three buildings in a residential area of the city of Chasiv Yar, mostly inhabited by people working in nearby factories. On Sunday night, rescuers managed to remove enough of the bricks and concrete to free a man who had been trapped for nearly 24 hours. Paramedics put him on a stretcher and he was rushed to the hospital. Ukraine’s Emergency Services said the latest rescue brought to six the number of people dug from the rubble. Earlier in the day, they made contact with three others still trapped alive under the rubble. Pavlo Kirilenko, governor of the Donetsk region that includes Chasiv Yar, said an estimated 24 people were still trapped, including a nine-year-old child. PHOTOS | Rescuers search for survivors in Chasiv Yar: Cranes and excavators worked alongside rescue teams to remove the rubble of a building, the sides of which had been completely severed by the impact of the impact. Rescuers continued to work in the rain despite the dangerous conditions. The pounding of artillery on the nearby front line echoed just a few kilometers away, sending some workers flinching and others running for cover. Kirilenko said the town of about 12,000 people was hit by Uragan rockets, which are launched from truck-based systems. Chasiv Yar is 20 kilometers southeast of Kramatorsk, a city that is a primary target for Russian forces as they grind westward. But later Sunday, Viacheslav Boitsov, deputy head of the emergency service in the Donetsk region, told The Associated Press that four shells hit the neighborhood and were likely Iskander missiles. Residents told The Associated Press that they heard at least three explosions and that, in addition to the deaths, many people were seriously injured in the explosions. A group of neighbors sat in the yard quietly discussing who was injured and who was missing. Saturday’s attack was the latest in a series of raids against civilian areas in the east, even though Russia has repeatedly claimed it only hits targets of military value in the war. Twenty-one people were killed earlier this month when an apartment building and a recreation area were hit by rockets in the southern Odesa region. In addition, at least 19 people were killed when a Russian missile hit a shopping center in the city of Kremenchuk in late June. There was no comment on Chasiv Yar at a Russian Defense Ministry briefing on Sunday. Donetsk region is one of two provinces along with Luhansk that make up the Donbas region, where separatist rebels have been fighting Ukrainian forces since 2014. Last week, Russia captured the city of Lysychansk, the last major stronghold of the Ukrainian resistance in Luhansk. WATCHES | What happened in Week 20 of Russia’s attack on Ukraine:
What happened in Week 20 of Russia’s attack on Ukraine
Russia declares victory in Luhansk and moves south to win the rest of Donbas. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky pledges to regain lost ground, and Canada becomes the first country to ratify Sweden’s and Finland’s NATO accession protocols. Russian forces are raising “real hell” in the Donbas, despite estimates that they have taken an operational pause, Luhansk regional governor Serhi Haidai said on Saturday. After the capture of Lysychansk, some analysts predicted that Moscow’s troops would likely need some time to rearm and regroup. But “so far no operational pause has been announced by the enemy. It is still attacking and shelling our territories with the same intensity as before,” Haidai said. He later said that Ukrainian forces destroyed some ammunition depots and barracks used by the Russians. Moscow says ousting the Ukrainian army from Donbas is central to what it calls a “special military operation” to ensure its own security, an offensive that has lasted more than four months and which the West calls an unprovoked war.
Kyiv condemns Ottawa for turbine return
The Ukrainian government is calling on Canada to reconsider its decision to allow turbines from a Russia-Europe gas pipeline to be delivered to Germany, saying it sets a “dangerous precedent” for sanctions against the Russian regime. Canada’s Natural Services Minister Jonathan Wilkinson announced on social media on Saturday that turbines from the Nord Stream 1 pipeline – which supplies natural gas from Russia to Germany – that had been sent to Montreal for scheduled repairs would be allowed to be returned. In June, Siemens Energy said Canadian sanctions imposed on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine meant the company could not return the turbines. WATCHES | Ottawa to return key turbine for Russian gas pipeline:
Ottawa imposes new sanctions but returns key turbine for Russian gas pipeline
Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly announced new sanctions against Russian agents and organizations, focusing on Russian disinformation efforts and industrial production. But the federal government also said it would grant “a time-limited and revocable permit” to Siemens Canada allowing a turbine to be returned to Germany. In his recent announcement, Wilkinson said turbine maker Siemens Canada would be given “limited and revocable permission” to return the equipment – effectively giving it an exemption. He said the delivery was necessary to support Europe’s “ability to access reliable and affordable energy” as it tries to move away from dependence on Russian oil and gas. The government says it plans to return six turbines. Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, warned last month that it was in crisis over Russia’s decision to cut the amount of natural gas flowing through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline by 60%. WATCHES | Europe returns to coal due to Russia concerns:
Europe returns to coal amid concerns that Russia will cut off gas supplies
Several European countries, including Germany, are facing gas supply shortages due to the war in Ukraine and are increasing coal production to meet their energy needs in case Russia stops all gas exports. In a statement Sunday, Ukraine’s foreign ministry and energy ministry expressed their “deep disappointment” in Canada’s decision. “This dangerous precedent violates international solidarity, goes against the principle of the rule of law and will have only one consequence: It will strengthen Moscow’s sense of impunity,” it said. Three Conservative MPs also issued a statement Sunday saying allowing the equipment to return undermines sanctions Canada has imposed on Russia at a time when it should be strengthening itself as an alternative gas supplier to Europe. “Allowing the gas turbine to return sets a dangerous precedent of rollback [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s blackmail in Europe and will negatively affect Canada’s position on the world stage,” said a joint statement by MPs Michael Chong, James Bezan and Pierre Paul-Hus.
