KYIV, Ukraine: A third wave of Russian forces is attacking the eastern Ukrainian town of Avdiivka and systematically shelling the center of the industrial hub, its Ukrainian head said Friday.
The nearly-encircled town near the Russian-held regional stronghold of Donetsk has faced a fierce onslaught for more than a month.
“The third wave (of assaults) began. They are attacking from all directions, from the flanks of the south and north, as they did before. They are attacking the industrial zone,” Vitaly Barabash, the head of the town, said.
Avdiivka has been on the front line since 2014 and is part of the Donetsk region, which the Kremlin has claimed to have annexed along with three other regions.
“They are attacking from all sides, using a lot of infantry. Machinery went to the industrial zone, because the asphalt surface allows them to do so,” Barabash told state media.
He said Russian forces were targeting Avdiivka with guided air bombs and cluster munitions resulting in between 30 and 40 “massive” strikes each day.
Barabash said 1,350 residents were remaining in the town that had a pre-war population of around 30,000 people, and that 102 people had been evacuated over the last week.
Under fire since 2014, the town has been largely destroyed by shelling, but has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance.
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Russia attacking Avdiivka ‘from all directions,’ says Kyiv
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Russia attacking Avdiivka ‘from all directions,’ says Kyiv
- The nearly-encircled town near the Russian-held regional stronghold of Donetsk has faced a fierce onslaught for more than a month
- Under fire since 2014, the town has been largely destroyed by shelling
US strikes kill 5 on alleged drug boats in Pacific
WASHINGTON: The US military said it killed on Thursday five more alleged drug traffickers aboard two vessels in the Pacific Ocean, bringing the divisive campaign’s death toll to over 100.
The Trump administration has carried out such strikes in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean since September but has provided no evidence that the boats are involved in drug trafficking, prompting debate about the operations’ legality.
The latest strikes hit two vessels in international waters that were “engaged in narco-trafficking operations,” US Southern Command said on X.
Three people were killed in the first vessel and two in the second vessel, it said.
The strikes have now killed 104 people, according to an AFP tally based on official data.
During a September operation, the US military launched a second strike that killed survivors of an initial attack on the same vessel, generating accusations of a war crime.
The use of the military for the anti-drug campaign and Trump’s warnings of a potential land strike in Venezuela have also raised the question whether he should seek authorization from Congress.
The House of Representatives rejected two Democratic resolutions on Wednesday aimed at halting the strikes and “hostilities in or against Venezuela” without its authorization.
The Trump administration has carried out such strikes in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean since September but has provided no evidence that the boats are involved in drug trafficking, prompting debate about the operations’ legality.
The latest strikes hit two vessels in international waters that were “engaged in narco-trafficking operations,” US Southern Command said on X.
Three people were killed in the first vessel and two in the second vessel, it said.
The strikes have now killed 104 people, according to an AFP tally based on official data.
During a September operation, the US military launched a second strike that killed survivors of an initial attack on the same vessel, generating accusations of a war crime.
The use of the military for the anti-drug campaign and Trump’s warnings of a potential land strike in Venezuela have also raised the question whether he should seek authorization from Congress.
The House of Representatives rejected two Democratic resolutions on Wednesday aimed at halting the strikes and “hostilities in or against Venezuela” without its authorization.
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