Russians bomb Mariupol school sheltering 400 residents; Pope denounces ‘repugnant’ war: Live updates
Russian forces focused on sorting out logistics and regrouping on Saturday rather than undertaking offensive operations, Ukraine military officials reported in a Sunday morning update.
The military maneuvers, or lack thereof, have experts around the world increasingly concerned that a stalemate could be on the horizon, with “enormous casualties” possible as troops focus on civilian targets.
A report from the Institute for the Study of War concluded that Ukrainian forces have defeated the initial Russian campaign of the war, but the report also highlighted activity of Russian forces, which have shown signs of “digging in around the periphery of Kyiv and elsewhere.”
“Stalemate is not armistice or ceasefire. It is a condition in war in which each side conducts offensive operations that do not fundamentally alter the situation. Those operations can be very damaging and cause enormous casualties,” Frederick W. Kagan, George Barros, and Kateryna Stepanenko wrote in an assessment published Saturday.
The findings echo what experts told USA TODAY last week.
A “quagmire is the realistic ‘goal,’” said Michael O’Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.
Russian equipment losses that were photographed or recorded on video say Russia has lost more than 1,500 tanks, trucks, mounted equipment and other heavy gear. Two out of three of those were captured or abandoned, signaling the failings of the Russian troops that let them go.
►At least 847 civilians, including 64 children, have been killed since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, the U.N. Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner reported Saturday, but the agency said the actual figures are much higher. Agents also estimated the violence had left nearly 1,400 civilians injured, including 78 children.
►Sunday’s intelligence update from the British defense ministry said as Russia has failed to make progress in capturing cities in eastern Ukraine, forces have increased “indiscriminate shelling of urban areas resulting in widespread destruction and large numbers of civilian casualties.”
►Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday again appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin to hold talks with him directly. Zelenskyy told Ukrainians the ongoing negotiations with Russia were “not simple or pleasant, but they are necessary.” He said he discussed the course of the talks with French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday.
used a hypersonic missile Friday to strike a western Ukraine target, the Interfax news agency reported. Hypersonic missiles are missiles that can move at five times the speed of sound. The Russian military said these missiles are capable of hitting targets at a range of more than 1,200 miles, or roughly the distance from New York City to Kansas City.
►The Mariupol city council claimed Russian soldiers have forced several thousand city residents to be relocated to Russia. “The occupiers illegally took people out of the Levoberezhny district and a shelter in the building of a sports club, where more than a thousand people (mostly women and children) were hiding from constant bombing,” the council said in a statement, according to the Associated Press.
Pope denounces ‘cruel and sacrilegious inhumanity’ of war
Pope Francis has denounced Russia’s “repugnant war” against Ukraine as “cruel and sacrilegious inhumanity.”
In some of his strongest words yet since Russia’s invasion on Feb. 24, Francis on Sunday told thousands of people in St. Peter’s Square that every day brings more atrocities in what is a “senseless massacre.”
“There is no justification for this,” Francis said, in an apparent reference to Russia, which sought to justify its invasion as vital for its own defense. But Francis again stopped short of naming Russia as the aggressor. Pontiffs typically have decried wars and their devastating toll on civilians without citing warmongers by name.
Francis also called on “all actors in the international community” to work toward ending the war. “Again this week, missiles, bombs, rained down on the elderly, children and pregnant mothers,” the pope said. His thoughts, he said, went to the millions who flee. “And I feel great pain for those who don’t even have the chance to escape,’’ Francis added.
– Associated Press
Ukrainian refugees in Moldova include Kristina Paleshev, whose five kids have been waking up at night startled by any loud noises, frightened that they are again under attack.
“We want to go back. I love my country and my town,” Paleshev, 38, said, as a tear rolled down her cheek. “I’m crying because our people are being killed.”
– Trevor Hughes
bombed a theater in Mariupol where civilians took shelter. The authorities said 130 people were rescued but many more could remain under the debris.
Mariupol, a strategic port on the Azov Sea, has been encircled by the Russian troops, cut from energy, food and water supplies and faced a relentless bombardment.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the siege of Mariupol would go down in history for what he said were war crimes committed by Russian troops.
– The Associated Press
introduction of the martial law that envisages a ban on parties associated with Russia.Millions of refugees are fleeing Ukraine. Where are they going?
Chinese President Xi Jinping in talks with U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday urged the parties in Ukraine to “keep the dialogue and negotiation going. The U.S. and NATO should also have dialogue with Russia to address the crux of the Ukraine crisis and ease the security concerns of both Russia and Ukraine.”
– The Associated Press
More coverage of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
- US-China relations:Biden warns Xi of supporting Russia as US-China relations face ‘crossroads’ over Ukraine invasion
- A ‘cold-blooded’ alliance?:China could be a pivotal force in Russia’s war against Ukraine
- Graham calls for Putin assassination:Even discussing it brings danger to US, experts say.
- ‘Please help us’:Weary voices call from Mariupol, where bodies line streets
- American sacrifices:We rationed gas during WWII and the 1970s oil shocks. Will that happen in ‘Putin’s war’?