Governor of Luhansk Province warns that Russian Troops have entered Severodonetsk. Russians are closer to the center of the city. They have killed a French journalist while shelling Severodonetsk.
Russian rocket launchers continue to pound Severodonetsk, as Russians try to make headways, image source, BBC.
Russian troops have eneterd Severodonetsk amidst relentless bombardment. Serhiy Haidai, the governor of Luhansk, says that Russia’s armies are nearing the city’s center ,after having nearly surrounded it. Haidai says that the battle for Severodonetsk is incredibly intense. Russian shelling has killed so many people that Ukrainian officials have given up counting.
A French journalist is the latest casualty of Russian artillery fire. Frédéric Leclerc-Imhoff, a journalist with BFM TV, died of shrapnel wounds. He was with an official evacuation convoy when a shrapnel hit his vehicle, this piercing his neck.
Ukraine Asks For More Heavy Weapons
The Russian bombardment of Severodonetsk has compelled Ukrainians to ask for more heavy weaponry from the west. Kyiv, particularly, wants western long range rocket systems. These have the a range further than traditional artillery. Yuri Sak, an advisor to the Ukrainian Minister of defence, believes they could turn the tide of war in Ukraine.
He says, “For us to be able to liberate our territories and expel the enemy, the most pressing need at the moment are the so called multi launch rocket systems-because they have a longer fire range than what we have at the moment. They will allow us to redress the balance of firepower in the east. And this will indeed be a game changer”.
However, long range multi rocket systems may escalate the war. However, US may send short range rocket systems to Ukraine. Meanwhile, EU has been prodding over a ban on Russian oil. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has urged them to show greater unity. “Its time for you to be not separate ,not fragments, but one whole”, he said. He urged EU to stop their internal quarrels in the sanctions , saying that they spur the Russians.
Read More – Ukraine May Get US-made MLRS Rocket Systems
