Russland hat am Mittwoch zum ersten Mal seit 2022 einen Luftangriff auf die nordostukrainische Stadt Charkiw durchgeführt, bei dem nach Angaben lokaler Behörden mindestens ein ziviler Todesfall und 16 Verletzungen zu beklagen waren. The airstrikes inflicted widespread destruction, hitting multiple residential buildings and damaging the city’s emergency surgery institute. Russia has intensified its military operations against Ukraine in recent days, launching several missile attacks on the capital Kyiv and striking energy infrastructure across the country, seemingly in retaliation for recent Ukrainian air raids on the Russian border area of Belgorod. However, such intermittent assaults have been common throughout the conflict.
The Kharkiv region straddles the frontline where Ukrainian and Russian forces have been engaged in battle for over two years since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. The area frequently comes under missile and drone attacks. Sergey Bolvinov, head of Kharkiv’s investigative police department, said in a Telegram post that Wednesday’s bombing marked the first use of aerial bombs since 2022. Regional governor Oleh Syniehubov also confirmed the use of aerial bombs.
The escalation comes as exhausted Ukrainian soldiers struggle with personnel and ammunition shortages while facing growing Russian pressure along the over 1,000 kilometer frontline. On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed one of his top security officials, replacing him with the head of Ukraine’s foreign intelligence agency in a new reshuffle.
Zelenskyy removed Oleksii Danilov from his position as secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, thanking him for his service in a video address late Tuesday. The president provided no rationale and simply stated that Danilov would be “reassigned to another area.”
Danilov was replaced by Oleksandr Lytvynenko, who had served as head of Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service. The National Security Council is a policy coordination body chaired by Zelenskyy. Danilov had held his post since October 2019, a few months after Zelenskyy took office. The dismissal comes after Zelenskyy’s decision in February to fire Ukraine’s top military commander, General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, and appoint Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi in his place. Tensions grew between Zaluzhnyi and the president following Ukraine’s much-touted yet unsuccessful 2023 summer counteroffensive. This month, Zaluzhnyi was named Ukraine’s ambassador to the United Kingdom.
