According to Ukrainian sources, the Azot chemical plant in the hotly contested administrative center of Severodonetsk was almost completely destroyed by Russian artillery and rocket fire. More recently, a building and the gatehouse were destroyed by bombing. “There are no surviving administrative buildings on the territory of the chemical giant,” Luhansk military governor Serhiy Hajday wrote on Telegram. The fight continued.
The general staff made similar statements in its situation report: “The struggle for full control of Severodonetsk continues,” it said. The enemy is moving more rocket artillery into the area. The General Staff and Hajdaj unanimously reported repelling a ground attack on the Sieverodonetsk suburb of Zolote. Meanwhile, Russian troops took over all residential areas in Severodonetsk, and Ukrainian defenders barricaded themselves in the industrial zone around the chemical plant.
The chemical factory after the building was bombed.
– © APA / groupdf
According to Ukrainian sources, it was currently impossible to evacuate the 568 civilians from the Azot chemical plant due to sustained fire from Russian troops. There is heavy fighting, says Hajdaj. 38 children were among those seeking protection in the facility’s bunkers.
According to British intelligence experts, Russian troops are continuing their efforts to close the ring around the city of Sieverodonetsk from the south. “Over the past 24 hours, Russian forces have likely continued to try to gain advantage on the Popasna axis, from where they want to encircle the Sievarodonetsk pocket from the south,” the site said in its daily update on the war in Ukraine. the British Ministry of Defense on Friday morning.
According to the staff, a Russian offensive further west on another strategic target, the Sloviansk conurbation, has failed for the time being. The Russians’ attempt to take control of the village of Bohorodichne, 20 kilometers north of Sloviansk on the opposite bank of the Seversky Donets River, was repulsed.
There are Russian air strikes in the direction of Avdiivka in the Donetsk region, heavy artillery in southern Ukraine on the border between the Kherson and Mykolaiv regions, while the Ukrainians say they have carried out several air strikes against Russian positions there. The information cannot be independently verified.
According to authorities, Ukrainian forces hit a Russian Navy tug with rockets in the Black Sea. The vessel “Vasily Beg” was carrying soldiers, weapons and ammunition on its way to Russian-occupied Cobra Island, south of the Odessa region, regional governor Maxym Marchenko said.
Despite polls suggesting that most Russians support the war in Ukraine, there are “elements” of the Russian population that are actively and passively voicing their opposition, British experts said. A unit recruited by Russia called the Freedom Legion for Russia almost certainly participates in combat operations alongside Ukrainian forces. Skepticism about the war is particularly high in elite business circles and oligarchs. The exit requests suggested that $15,000 millionaires were trying to leave Russia, according to the intelligence update.
Despite the criticism, French President Emmanuel Macron wants to maintain his willingness to hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Whenever it is useful, he will talk to Putin, Macron said in an interview with TV station BFM. France will do everything it can to ensure that Ukraine wins the war. France has always supported Ukraine. Macron was also open to talks with Putin about exporting grain from the Ukrainian port of Odessa on the Black Sea. But he sees little chance of a deal. “We need to talk to Russia about food security.” It could also be justified to directly involve the Secretary-General of the United Nations. “But I don’t think much about it that way, because I talked to President Putin a few weeks ago, but he didn’t want to accept a UN resolution on this matter.”