Lugansk Governor Serhiy Haidai said the situation “is on the brink of being critical” and that the eastern Ukraine region “is now like Mariupol”, a city left in ruins by Russian attacks.
“Now for the Lugansk region it is the the most difficult moment in the eight years of the warHaidai said on Tuesday, referring to the start of the conflict with Russian-backed separatists in 2014.
“The Russians are advancing in all directions at the same time, they have brought an absurd number of fighter planes and equipment,” the governor said on the Telegram platform.
Haidai also accused Moscow troops of deploying “scorched earth” tactics throughout the region, one of two that make up the industrial heartland of eastern Ukraine.
“It’s only getting worse. What the Russians are doing is difficult to describe in words. The invaders are killing our cities, destroying everything around them.“said the governor.
Haidai spoke of “increasingly intense shelling” and added that “the Russian army intends to completely destroy Severodonetsk,” a strategic city northwest of Lugansk.
“We are an outpost that stops the attack and we will do so. Despite the superiority of the enemy army, we will win, because we fight for our land”, he guaranteed.
Also Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia is using everything at its disposal in the battle for the eastern Donbass region.
“Virtually the entire power of the Russian military, whatever is left, is going on the offensive. Liman, Popasna, Sievierodonetsk, Slaviansk – the occupiers want to destroy everything there,” the Ukrainian head of state said in his evening address to the nation.
On Tuesday, Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denis Monastirsky indicated that there were more than 20,000 war crimes.
Ukraine will cooperate “with foreign prosecutors, joint investigation teams and experts”, although it stressed that “most of the work was carried out by Ukrainian policemen”, it promised.
More than 13,500 of the crimes were recorded by Ukrainian police investigators.
Monastirsky also indicated that the priority in all “occupied territories” is mine clearance, according to the Ukrainian Unian news agency.
Source: Observadora
