Ukrainian rescuers stop searching in Dnipro

Ukrainian rescuers stop searching in Dnipro

Ukraine on Tuesday halted its search for survivors in Dnipro, under the rubble of an apartment building destroyed by a Russian missile in one of the deadliest bombings of the war that left 45 dead and about 20 missing, according to a recent report.

• Also read: Russian strike in Dnipro: death toll rises to 44, 22 still missing

• Also read: Ukraine: Dnipro bombing death toll rises to 40, Kremlin denies responsibility

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Regional governor Valentyn Reznitchenko reported 45 dead on Tuesday afternoon, including six children. The previous toll reported 44 dead, 20 missing and 79 injured.

Earlier, Ukrainian emergency services reported on Telegram that “search and rescue operations at the scene of the rocket attack in the city of Dnipro have been completed”.

It is one of the deadliest bombings on civilian sites since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began nearly 11 months ago.

On Saturday, a rocket ripped open the Quai de la Victoire building in Dnipro (east), destroying “more than 200 apartments,” according to Kyrylo Tymoshenko, an official with Ukraine’s presidency.

The building collapsed in on itself, trapping dozens of people under the rubble.

For almost four days, the emergency services tried to find survivors with reinforcements from cranes and a dog brigade. They said 39 people were rescued.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed Monday that “anyone guilty of this war crime will be identified and brought to justice.”

At the funeral of one of the victims, a well-known boxing trainer in his community, relatives gathered in front of his coffin and portrait, some in tears. Next to the coffin is a wreath of blue and yellow flowers, the colors of Ukraine.

“I will remember him as a person, open and honest, always ready to help,” recalls Artyom Birioukov, one of his students, during a farewell ceremony. “He was my second dad,” he added.

For its part, Russia, as in previous episodes, denied any involvement in the slaughter, blaming the Ukrainians. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov spoke on Monday of a “tragedy” that he believes could be due to a shot by Ukrainian anti-aircraft defenses.

The building was hit during a new wave of massive bombing raids on Ukrainian power plants, a campaign launched by the Kremlin in October intended to plunge Ukrainians into cold and darkness after Russia suffered a string of military setbacks.

On the diplomatic front, Westerners have reiterated their support for their Ukrainian ally, which is still demanding more weapons, particularly tanks, to further push back the Russian army from occupied territories.

“The message we are sending to (President Vladimir) Putin is that we are committed to defending the Ukrainians until they win,” British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly told a research center in Washington.

On Saturday, London announced the delivery of Challenger 2 armored tanks to Kyiv, which will be the first delivery of western-made heavy tanks to Ukraine.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz faced increased pressure from several European leaders on Tuesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to authorize the delivery of the Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, including by equipped third countries, which Kyiv has demanded for weeks.

“We hope and try to organize more support for Ukraine,” said Polish President Andrzej Duda, whose country has said it is ready to supply Leopard 2 tanks to Kyiv. “We hope that the manufacturer of these tanks, Germany, will also participate,” he added.

A meeting on Western military support for Ukraine is scheduled for Friday at the US base in Ramstein, Germany.

For her part, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, promised in a speech in Davos that the EU would continue to support Ukraine “as far as necessary”.

Kyiv has also received a first tranche of three billion euros from an 18 billion envelope planned by the European Union, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday.

Ukraine’s requests for help also come as the Russian army and paramilitary group Wagner have redoubled their efforts in eastern Ukraine to capture the town of Bakhmout and its environs, a bloody battle that has been ongoing since the summer.

AFP journalists noted on Tuesday that heavy artillery battles were ongoing around Bakhmout, a town of 70,000 people before the war and now largely destroyed.

“Over there is Verdun,” says Ivan, a Ukrainian military medic, referring to that horrifying World War I battle between the French and Germans in eastern France.