Civilian convoy ‘shelled near Zaporizhzhia’
Peter Beaumont
Peter Beaumont is in Dnipro for the Guardian:
A civilian convoy of cars heading to pick up relatives trying to flee Russian occupied territory was shelled near the city of Zaporizhzhia on Friday morning, causing fatalities and deaths.
Footage posted on social media showed a horrific scene with dead and injured lying in the road with reports that the convoy was hit more than a dozen times.
In one video, taken from inside a nearby building, a woman can be heard sobbing saying repeatedly: “Dead people are laying there.”
At least one crater was visible in other images that showed cars that had taken the full force of the blast.
The governor of Zaporizhzhia region Oleksandr Starukh said in a statement: “The enemy launched an attack on a civilian convoy and the outskirts of the city. People were standing in line to leave for the occupied territory to pick up their relatives and to deliver aid. There are dead and wounded. Emergency services are at the site.”
The attack came on the day that Russian president was due to formally sign a declaration annexing parts of occupied Ukraine following sham referenda by pro-occupation forces.
In the hours befpre the attack, Russia launched strikes on several cities including the centre of the nearby city of Dnipro.
Key events
The Ukrainian governor of Zaporizhzhia, Oleksandr Starukh, has declared tomorrow to be a day of mourning in the region following the strike on a convoy this morning that has killed at least 23 people and wounded 28 others.
In a message posted to Telegram, Starukh said:
This morning, the Rashists fired at civilians who were waiting in a civilian humanitarian convoy to leave the regional centre. These people went to their relatives in the occupied territories, brought humanitarian aid. They were supposed to take our fellow citizens and take them to the free part of Ukraine. The occupiers struck defenceless Ukrainians. This is another terrorist attack by a terrorist country. In connection with the tragedy and in order to honour the memory of the dead, 1 October 2022 is declared a day of mourning in the Zaporizhzhia region.
Reuters is carrying a witness report from the scene of the attack on the civilian convoy that happened earlier on Friday.
Jonathan Landay writes for the agency that police and emergency workers had rushed to the scene of the missile strike, the impact of which threw chunks of dirt into the air and sprayed the vehicles with shrapnel. The windows of the vehicles – mostly cars and three vans – were blown out.
The vehicles were packed with the occupants’ belongings, blankets and suitcases. A body leaned from the driver’s seat into the passenger seat of a yellow car, his left hand still clutching the steering wheel.
Reuters reports plastic sheets were draped over the bodies of a woman and young man in a green car in the next car in front. A dead cat lay next to the young man in the rear seat.
Two bodies lay in a white mini-van in front of that car, its windows blown and the sides pitted with shrapnel.
A woman who gave her name to reporters as Nataliya said she and her husband had been visiting their children in Zaporizhzhia.
“We were returning to my mother who is 90 years old. We have been spared. It’s a miracle,” she said, standing with her husband beside their car.
The proxy Russian authorities have already issued a denial that the incident was caused by Russian munitions, instead blaming Ukrainian forces for the attack. The Russian news agency RIA quotes Volodymyr Rogov, one of the pro-Russian leaders imposed on occupied Zaproizhzhia, saying: “Ukrainian militants hit a convoy with dozens of civilian cars queuing.”
Russia has repeatedly denied targeting civilians since its latest invasion of Ukraine began on 24 February, despite the clear evidence of damage to civilian infrastructure and discovery of mass burial sites in areas that had been occupied by Russian forces.
Peter Beaumont
Kyrylo Tymoshenko, an adviser to the Ukrainian presidency, has said of the attack on the civilian convoy: “The terror continues. The killings continue. Sixteen missiles were launched using S-300 air defence.”
Confirming the number, he said four missiles hit near a car parts market where the convoy had gathered.
“There was a convoy of cars with civilians on their way to the temporarily occupied territory to pick up their relatives.”
23 dead and 28 injured in Zaporizhzhia shelling
Reuters has a quick snap to report that Ukraine’s governor of Zaporizhzhia has said the casualty figures from the attack on the convoy is 23 dead and 28 wounded.
Civilian convoy ‘shelled near Zaporizhzhia’
Peter Beaumont
Peter Beaumont is in Dnipro for the Guardian:
A civilian convoy of cars heading to pick up relatives trying to flee Russian occupied territory was shelled near the city of Zaporizhzhia on Friday morning, causing fatalities and deaths.
Footage posted on social media showed a horrific scene with dead and injured lying in the road with reports that the convoy was hit more than a dozen times.
In one video, taken from inside a nearby building, a woman can be heard sobbing saying repeatedly: “Dead people are laying there.”
At least one crater was visible in other images that showed cars that had taken the full force of the blast.
The governor of Zaporizhzhia region Oleksandr Starukh said in a statement: “The enemy launched an attack on a civilian convoy and the outskirts of the city. People were standing in line to leave for the occupied territory to pick up their relatives and to deliver aid. There are dead and wounded. Emergency services are at the site.”
The attack came on the day that Russian president was due to formally sign a declaration annexing parts of occupied Ukraine following sham referenda by pro-occupation forces.
In the hours befpre the attack, Russia launched strikes on several cities including the centre of the nearby city of Dnipro.
Oleksandr Starukh, governor of Zaporizhzhia, has posted to Telegram to say that a civilian convoy has been hit by a Russian attack near Zaporizhzhia.
Stryuk said: “There are dead and wounded. Rescuers, medics, and all relevant services are currently working at the site.”
Serhai Haidai, Ukraine’s governor of Luhansk, has also reported the incident, saying: “Near Zaporizhzhia, the Russians fired rockets at a convoy heading to the occupied territory. It should be noted that the departure of 34 vehicles with residents of Luhansk region was planned. More detailed information about the victims is being clarified.”
The claims have not been independently verified.
More details soon …
Some newly mobilised Russian reservists have been ordered to source their own first aid supplies and advised that female sanitary products are a cost-effective solution, according to the latest briefing by the UK Ministry of Defence.
Medical provision for Russian combat troops in Ukraine is likely growing worse, it says, adding that “medical training and first-aid awareness is likely poor”.
Here is some further detail from the UK MoD’s update:
Some Russia troops have obtained their own modern, western-style combat torniquets but have stowed them on their equipment using cable-ties, rather than with the Velcro provided – probably because such equipment is scarce and liable to be pilfered.
This is almost certain to hamper or render impossible the timely application of torniquet care in the case of catastrophic bleeding on the battlefield.
Russian troops’ lack of confidence in sufficient medical provision is almost certainly contributing to a declining state of morale and a lack of willingness to undertake offensive operations in many units in Ukraine.
Star Wars actor Mark Hamill has become an ambassador for United24, Ukraine’s crowdfunding platform, and will help raise funds to support its war efforts.
The Star Wars actor said he was “honoured” to take on the role.
He will help raise funds to support Ukrainian defenders, the Drone Army, a project set up by the Ukrainian government to procure unmanned drones to assist the war effort.
The Army of Drones will be used to monitor the 2,470km front line and provide an effective response to enemy attacks.
The president’s official Instagram page also shared the news, writing:
American actor who played Luke Skywalker in Star Wars, Mark Hamill became the ambassador of the United24 fundraising platform.
He is the first ambassador to help raise funds to support our defenders, the Drone Army.
This is a difficult yet very important mission. Mark, we are sure you will definitely handle it. Thank you for supporting the Ukrainian people in our struggle for freedom.”
Putin has called for mistakes in Russia’s ongoing military mobilisation for the offensive in Ukraine to be “corrected”.
Here is a report on his comments, and growing discontent over the conscription, from AFP:
Russian media and social networks have reported cases of the mobilisation of elderly people, students, the sick or conscripts without military experience.
Opposition to the drive has also sparked protests and the flight of thousands of men abroad.
“This mobilisation raises many questions. We must correct all the mistakes and ensure that they do not happen again,” Putin said during a videoconference with his security council broadcast on Russian television on Thursday.
The president gave the example of fathers of large families, people suffering from serious illnesses or very old people being summoned, despite these groups being exempted legally.
“If a mistake has been made, it must be corrected and those who were summoned without an appropriate reason should come home,” Putin said.
On Monday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov admitted there had been “mistakes” in the mobilisation, which was supposed to focus on 300,000 reservists with military experience or useful skills, such as truck drivers.
More than 2,400 people have been detained in demonstrations against the mobilisation in Russia since it was announced on 21 September, according to the OVD-Info organisation.
Many Russians have also chosen to flee the country, causing large queues at the borders of Georgia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and Finland.
Many flights were also booked up.
Reuters has published the following summary on developments relating to the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, which EU leaders believe was the target of sabotage at the start of the week.
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The cause of damage to the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines under the Baltic Sea, built to carry Russian gas to Europe though already shut, has not yet been identified. Sweden’s coastguard said it found a fourth leak.
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Western countries said the pipelines were sabotaged while stopping short of openly ascribing blame. Russia, which has denied involvement, said it looked like acts of state-sponsored terrorism and that the US stood to gain. Washington has denied any involvement.
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US defence secretary Lloyd Austin said it was too soon to speculate who might have been behind the pipeline ruptures.
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Nato also called the pipeline leaks sabotage and said it would respond robustly to any deliberate attempt to target infrastructure of alliance members.
Putin to hold formal annexation ceremony
As mentioned below, Vladimir Putin is due to host a ceremony today formally announcing the annexing of four regions of Ukraine.
According to his spokesman Dmitry Peskov, Putin will sign accession documents at the Kremlin before delivering a speech. A pop concert is also planned on Red Square, where a stage and screens have been set up.
The territory Russia controls in Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia amounts to about 15% of Ukraine’s total area.
Summary
It’s now 7.50am in Ukraine. Here are the latest developments:
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Vladimir Putin is expected to preside over a ceremony to formally annexe swathes of Ukraine today. The Russian president is expected to sign into law the annexations of four Ukrainian regions – Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk. Russia has held fake referendums over the past week in order to claim a mandate for the territories.
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The UN secretary general has warned Russia that annexing Ukrainian regions would mark a “dangerous escalation” that would jeopardise the prospects for peace in the region. António Guterres said any decision to proceed with the annexation of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions “would have no legal value and deserves to be condemned”.
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The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, warned of a “very harsh” response by Ukraine if Russia went ahead with the annexations.
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There are indications that Russia might limit the movement of Ukrainians living in the occupied territories after it announces their annexation. Ukrainians have been told that from Saturday they will need to apply for a pass from the occupying authorities. This comes as the exiled Luhansk regional governor, Serhiy Haidai, said Russia had prevented about 1,000 Ukrainians from crossing the border into Latvia.
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Russian forces may face “imminent defeat” in the key north-eastern city of Lyman as Ukrainian soldiers continue their counteroffensive in the east of the country, according to a US thinktank. The Institute for the Study of War, citing Russian reports, said the defeat would allow Ukrainian troops to “threaten Russian positions along the western Luhansk” region. Alexander Petrikin, the pro-Russian head of the city administration, admitted the situation had grown “difficult” for Russian forces trying to hold the territory.
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Ukrainian forces have secured all of Kupiansk and driven Russian troops from their remaining positions on the east bank of the river that divides the north-eastern Ukrainian city. Most of Kupiansk, a strategic railway junction, was recaptured earlier this month as part of a counteroffensive by Ukrainian troops. AFP reported that those Russian troops who held out on the east bank of the Oskil river have been driven out.
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Finland is closing its border to Russian tourists after Putin’s partial mobilisation order prompted large numbers of people to flee the country. From midnight Thursday Finnish time (9pm GMT), Russian tourists holding an EU Schengen visa will be turned away unless they have a family tie or a compelling reason to travel.
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More than half of Russians felt fearful or anxious after Putin’s mobilisation announcement, according to a new poll. The poll by the independent Levada Centre showed 47% of respondents said they had felt anxiety, fear or dread after hearing that hundreds of thousands of soldiers would be drafted to fight in Ukraine.
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Nato vowed a “determined response” to what it described as “deliberate, reckless and irresponsible acts of sabotage” after leaks were discovered in the two Nord Stream pipelines. Swedish authorities have reported a fourth leak on one of the pipelines. The two leaks in Swedish waters were close to each other.
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Gas is likely to stop leaking from the damaged Nord Stream 1 pipeline on Monday, according to the pipeline’s operator. A spokesperson for Nord Stream AG said it was not possible to provide any forecasts for the pipeline’s future operation until the damage had been assessed.
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The Kremlin has said incidents on the Nord Stream pipelines look like an “act of terrorism”. The Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, said a foreign state was probably responsible. Russia’s foreign ministry claimed the “incident on the Nord Stream occurred in a zone controlled by American intelligence”.
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The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, announced an eighth package of sanctions – including a draft sanctions law seen by the Guardian – designed to “make the Kremlin pay” for the escalation of the war against Ukraine. Hungary “cannot and will not support” energy sanctions in the package, said Gergely Gulyas, chief of staff to the prime minister, Viktor Orbán. An EU official said an agreement on the next sanctions package was expected before next week’s EU summit, or at least major parts of the package.
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Russia is escalating its use of Iranian-supplied “kamikaze” drones in southern Ukraine, including against the southern port of Odesa and the nearby city of Mykolaiv.
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Oleg Deripaska, one of Russia’s most powerful oligarchs, has been indicted by the US Department of Justice for criminal sanctions violations. Deripaska previously had deep links to British establishment figures.
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