Russia launches new attacks on Ukraine as UN warns of war crimes

Tribune News Service

KYIV, Ukraine – Russia launched fresh rockets and combat drones over several regions of Ukraine on Tuesday, following heavy bombardment a day before that left at least 19 people dead, struck vital infrastructure, and prompted furious international condemnation.

The authorities in the hotly contested southern region of Zaporizhzhya reported rocket attacks, while explosions took place in the vicinities of Kyiv and the western city of Khmelnytskyi.

An air raid alert sounded in Kyiv on Tuesday morning, prompting people to seek safety in emergency shelters. An alert on Monday had people taking cover in emergency shelters for nearly six hours.

Areas of Dnipropetrovsk, Vinnytsia, Mykolaiv and Rivne were also under fire. In the Vinnytsia region south-west of Kyiv, a thermal power station was attacked with combat drones. There were no casualties, the power plant’s press office said.

Ukrainian media reported that 20 rockets had landed on Tuesday morning.

In the afternoon, the Russian Defence Ministry confirmed attacks against military sites and the power network. “The goal of the strike has been achieved,” said ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov.

On Monday, Ukrainian authorities counted more than 80 Russian attacks by land, sea and air. Many were averted by air defenses. According to initial information, 19 people died and more than 100 were injured across the country although Kyiv said the number was subject to change.

The escalation of Russian attacks on Ukraine could be classed as war crimes, the U.N. Human Rights Office in Geneva warned.

“Attacks targeting civilians and objects indispensable to the survival of civilians are prohibited under international humanitarian law,” spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said.

“The location and timing of the strikes – when people were commuting to work and taking children to school – is particularly shocking,” she added.

In addition to putting civilians in harm’s way with strikes on city centers, 12 energy companies and other important infrastructure were hit on Monday, the U.N. office said on Tuesday.

Attacking power plants just before winter hits particularly vulnerable people who are unable to flee because of their age or illness, Shamdasani said.

President Joe Biden and the other leaders of the G-7 group will hold a virtual meeting on Tuesday to discuss their “unwavering commitment to support Ukraine,” the White House said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will join at the start of the closed meeting, scheduled to begin at noon GMT.

In a statement, the White House said the leaders would discuss holding Russian President Vladimir Putin “accountable in the face of Russia’s aggression and atrocities.”

Hundreds of localities were still without electricity as a result of Monday’s bombardments, Ukrainian authorities said. At one point, more than 3,500 communities were in the dark.

Hundreds of emergency workers have fanned out across the country to clean up from the aftermath of the Russian attacks.

Poland said it was preparing for the possibility of a new wave of war refugees from Ukraine following the intensification of Russian attacks.

“We are ready at any time, our borders are open, and we are also logistically prepared to receive refugees,” Marlena Malag, the family and social policy minister, told public broadcaster TVP.

Ukrainians would find support and protection in Poland, as was the case when the war broke out in late February and the months that followed, she said.

Poland and Ukraine share a border more than 500 kilometres long. According to the Polish government in September, about 1.3 million Ukrainian refugees live in the country.