(Image by NEIVANMADE)
Update as of 10:00 PM EDT: All of Ukraine is now under air raid alert.
Casualties are coming in for Kharkiv:
Two civilians were killed and at least seven were injured in russian missile attack on Kharkiv, Governor Syniehubov reported. https://t.co/WrPhyuVpXj
— Iryna Voichuk (@IrynaVoichuk) April 6, 2024
As I begin to write tonight’s update – 7:20 PM EDT – the eastern half of Ukraine is under air raid alert!
Kharkiv is under missile and Shahed drone attack!
Right now, Kharkiv is under russian missile attack!
— Iryna Voichuk (@IrynaVoichuk) April 5, 2024
Shahed drones reportedly detected in Kharkiv Oblast!
— Iryna Voichuk (@IrynaVoichuk) April 5, 2024
Earlier today Russia did another double tap strike in Zaporizhzhia targeting rescue workers who’d responded to the initial strike.
Again a Russian double tap attack on Ukraine. This time on Zaporizhzhia. One missile strike, then, 40 minutes after, another one. Four people killed, many injured. Journalists who were on the scene to film the first attack, wounded too. Ukraine needs air defence urgently!
— Olga Tokariuk (@olgatokariuk) April 5, 2024
“they’ve just hit us with two more rockets right as we were filling the site of the first attack”
harrowing moment of russians attacking journalists and first-responders with “double-tap” in today’s bombing of my homecity Zaporizhzhia in Ukraine pic.twitter.com/zPgS1Aiei9
— вареничок.eristavi 🇺🇦🏳️🌈 (@maksymeristavi) April 5, 2024
Here is President Zelenskyy’s address from earlier today. Video below, English transcript after the jump.
We can rightfully be proud that in every region of Ukraine, people strive to do everything for our defense – address by the President of Ukraine
5 April 2024 – 18:31
I wish health to all Ukrainians!
Today – the city of Chernihiv, and Chernihiv region. Our defense is here, our warriors.
I’m grateful to everyone involved in the construction of fortifications in the region: Chernihiv region is working according to schedule. I listened to reports from the military and security leadership of the region about defense issues, destruction of Russian sabotage and reconnaissance groups, and resistance to attacks. The problems are the same in all border areas. It’s continuous Russian abuse – shelling and terror. Last year, terrorists fired 15,000 shells attacking the border communities of Chernihiv region where living 15,000 residents, who suffer constant attacks from Russia. They spare no shell. They try to get to literally every person – they want to destroy life here completely. And everyone who defends our people, all our communities, our entire Ukraine, everyone in the world who helps Ukraine, is a true defender of life. I am grateful to everyone.
I held a coordination meeting devoted to the city of Chernihiv and the region concerning many social and recovery issues. We will speed up the demining of farmland – it’s what the region needs so that there are no remnants of Russian shells, the shells and mines left since the occupation. Our government officials now have the resources to support the economic life of Chernihiv region. I held a meeting here with entrepreneurs as part of our “Made in Ukraine” program. The platform was presented in the region. The government will allocate an additional UAH 1.2 billion in economic areas for Chernihiv region. It’s what would support the region. And of course, I thank everyone working in our revitalized industries, especially in defense companies, everyone involved in drone development, equipment for the Armed Forces, for the State Emergency Service of Ukraine. We can rightfully be proud that in every region of Ukraine, people strive to do everything necessary for the country, necessary for our defense, for the success of our warriors on the battlefield.
And one more thing.
Right here, in Chernihiv region, I want to specially commend all our border guards. Each and every one who serves in units of Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service on the borderline, and together with all units of the defense and security forces on the front lines. I’m grateful to everyone who has proven themselves truly strong individuals, truly effective defenders of Ukraine! DOZOR is the special unit of our border guard service. With honor, it performs tasks along the entire front line. Special recognition goes separately to the DOZOR teams of drone operators. I am proud of you, our soldiers! Thank you to the border guards from the Pomsta and Stalevy Kordon brigades of the Offensive Guard. Warriors of the Volyn detachment, especially Senior Soldiers Serhiy Lebed and Serhiy Antoniuk. Thank you, guys, and thank you to all your comrades! Soldiers of the Kherson border detachment, especially Soldier Oleh Shybeko and Sergeant Vasyl Kovalenko. Well done! The Sumy border detachment, especially Sergeants Ihor Lukianenko and Oleksandr Solomatko. Thank you for resisting Russian saboteurs.
Thank you to everyone who delivers results for Ukraine! To all who protect lives!
Chernihiv, thank you for this day!
Glory to Ukraine!
Lithuania:
Lithuania will purchase 3,000 FPV drones for Ukraine.
Thank you for your unwavering support!
We are stronger together 🇺🇦🤝🇱🇹 https://t.co/MRUUIYnb4U— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) April 5, 2024
DC:
Schumer: "I have spoken with Speaker Johnson, and I believe that he understands the threat of further delaying the national security supplemental. However, Speaker Johnson has to ultimately decide for himself whether or not he will do the right thing for Ukraine, for America…" https://t.co/geQpCIFFdu
— Craig Caplan (@CraigCaplan) April 5, 2024
Schumer: "It is a matter of the highest urgency that Speaker Johnson and House Leadership put the Senate’s bipartisan supplemental package on the House floor, because I am confident that if he puts it on the floor, it will pass."
— Craig Caplan (@CraigCaplan) April 5, 2024
First post from the thread, the rest from the Thread Reader App:
1/6. I don't think Ukraine aid is going to pass without a discharge petition that allows a simple vote.
— Timothy Snyder (@TimothyDSnyder) April 4, 2024
2/6. I do think what Johnson is doing now is specifically designed to prevent the discharge petition from getting enough votes.3/6. By bringing up Ukraine, he is giving members of Congress an excuse not to sign the discharge petition.4/6. For the last six months, all of Johnson’s ploys have had the same logic. Make a promise, create some hope, generate excuses for European and executive branch inaction, weaken Ukraine, advance Russian genocide.5/6. Press coverage dwells now on hope rather than recalling that Johnson’s entire record thus far as Speaker involves dishonest gambits to prevent Ukraine funding.6/6. If you are a member of Congress, please sign the discharge petition.
@razomforukraine @JoaquinCastrotx @RepAndreCarson @RepMarkPocan
Somewhere in Ukraine:
This boy always met flying helicopters with a flag, wishing them a luck and come back alive.
One day they landed in front of his house. pic.twitter.com/rvRsLKjzAm
— Alex Bond (@AlexBondODUA) April 4, 2024
There’s always a moment for hopehttps://t.co/vx23HucCWx
— Illia Ponomarenko 🇺🇦 (@IAPonomarenko) April 5, 2024
The Defence Blog has the details:
Ukrainian pilots made a spontaneous landing in the middle of a field near a young boy proudly waving the Ukrainian flag upon their return from a mission.
The boy, who regularly greeted them with the national flag as they flew overhead, received a surprise when the airmen landed to deliver him candies, gifts, and heartfelt greetings. As a pair of attack helicopters, Mi-24s, returned from their mission, one landed in the field to allow a crew member to approach the boy with gifts while the other circled at low altitude.
This touching act sparked a wave of admiration on social media, where users praised the airmen for brightening the day of a patriotic young boy who deeply loves his country.
Little dusty in here.
Bakhmut front:
Successful delivery of explosives.
A Ukrainian ground drone blew up a bridge in the Bakhmut direction.📹: 5th Assault Brigade pic.twitter.com/6KhHKkMmnr
— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) April 5, 2024
Pokrovsk, Russian occupied Donetsk Oblast:
@MSF has suspended its medical humanitarian activities in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, temporarily, except supporting emergency care and ambulance referral services. pic.twitter.com/x0M5H2jKUO
— MSF Ukraine (@MSF_Ukraine) April 5, 2024
Chernihiv Oblast:
Chernihiv region. Construction of fortifications. The terms of work completion and reliability are paramount. I am grateful to everyone involved!
🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/FMARCyBzmy
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) April 5, 2024
Kharkiv and other parts of Ukraine:
In recent weeks, Russia has destroyed 80% of Ukraine's thermal power plants, targeting critical infrastructure to sow a humanitarian crisis. The destruction is so severe that some power stations may never be restored, like Zmiivska power plant and Kharkiv TEC-5 . pic.twitter.com/X7dc8X8sKi
— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) April 5, 2024
Russia isn’t just trying to take down Ukraine’s power generation and transmission grid, it is also trying to destabilize Europe’s energy generation and transmission grid and Europe’s transportation infrastructure:
Russian attempts to destabilise European energy infrastructure have been well documented but ‘thousands’ of interferences in transport networks have been less discussed. https://t.co/Yk68l7D31N pic.twitter.com/aqvMBTcKC1
— Financial Times (@FT) April 5, 2024
Russia:
Six planes destroyed at Morozovsk airfield in Russia, with eight more significantly damaged. Su-24 and Su-34 aircraft—these are the types Russia employs to deploy KABs on AFU positions and frontline cities
🔥💪🏻— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) April 5, 2024
Among the drones which Ukraine launched against the Morozovsk air base in Russia was also this one. The music you hear hasn’t been added to the video, it is the drone with a speaker playing the German/Breton drinking song “Was wollen wir trinken” (what do we want to drink).… pic.twitter.com/UTELhmOxrd
— (((Tendar))) (@Tendar) April 5, 2024
Among the drones which Ukraine launched against the Morozovsk air base in Russia was also this one. The music you hear hasn’t been added to the video, it is the drone with a speaker playing the German/Breton drinking song “Was wollen wir trinken” (what do we want to drink).
Don’t know who had this idea but let him know that I owe him a drink.
Source of video: @war_monitor_ua
In today’s Russian papers, Russia’s opponents depicted as “forces of the Antichrist” and Russia described as a country “chosen by God.” How Moscow views the world right now. #ReadingRussia pic.twitter.com/PeWHJUf7kg
— Steve Rosenberg (@BBCSteveR) April 5, 2024
That’s enough for tonight.
Your daily Patron!
First, some adjacent material from the Ukrainian MOD:
Love your furry friends and support Ukraine.
📷: 112th @TDF_UA Brigade pic.twitter.com/aR98Dq7Qlz
— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) April 4, 2024
Sniffing the small joys of spring
Pity that it's not only the flowers I have to sniff. pic.twitter.com/XbLB6YLN77— Patron (@PatronDsns) April 5, 2024
Open thread!
db11
Thank you Adam.
Jay
As always, thank you Adam.
BR
Adam, sorry for the OT but I am curious what you think of this (translation from ynet):
https://mastodon.social/@Alon/112221364971959630
Gin & Tonic
Pretty important word missing from the MSF statement.
Martin
@BR: As I said yesterday, if everyone in the implementation chain isn’t in agreement on the intent of the policy – you don’t have a policy – you have a bunch of people making shit up as they go.
Gin & Tonic
I like the drone with the speaker, but I still think LTC Kilgore did it better.
Martin
@BR: Not sure ‘we knew they weren’t combatants but we decided to kill them anyway’ will play at The Hague. Sure hope we get to find out.
Old School
@Gin & Tonic:
What word are you looking for? “Ukraine”?
Adam L Silverman
@BR: I’ve seen the Ynet article. My Hebrew is very, very rusty. My Arabic is worse. Surprisingly I can still read French. Anyhow, if the machine translations are accurate, given what that community is like, this doesn’t surprise me. But this didn’t happen in a vacuum. This is the result of Bibi running Israel for most of the past 20 years and building ever more extreme coalitions. In doing so he and his ever more extreme partners pulled the Israeli civic and political culture along with him while enabling and rewarding the most extreme political and religious elements of them.
Adam L Silverman
@Gin & Tonic: Yep.
Gin & Tonic
@Old School: “russian”
db11
@Adam L Silverman: Does MSF operate either in Russia proper or within the Russian sphere of influence?
Why the caution/omission, given the devastation to their facility? They’re afraid to antagonize the party that just bombed the shit out of them?
Bill Arnold
In that ynet.co piece (google translation), Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir are essentially arguing that apparent Israeli war criminals should be allowed to continue to commit war crimes until the war is over, and that furthermore, war crimes are good if the good guys (Israelis) are committing them.
They both would vehemently decry this interpretation of their words.
Bex
Since Moses Johnson says he doesn’t have a bank account, I can’t imagine that he is being paid to delay delay delay. //
Bill Arnold
@Gin & Tonic:
I saw that in the first tweet, looked for mention of Russia in the next, and saw no attribution. (Most of the replies are pointing this out.)
Is there any excuse? E.g. do they have a long-term policy of non-attribution, or are they looked to operate in Russia-controlled areas?
Jay
@Bill Arnold:
https://www.msf.org/attacks-medical-care-depth
Yes, MSF has a policy of not pointing fingers until all the facts and evidence are known.
Adam L Silverman
@db11: Russian occupied parts of Ukraine. Which is why they most likely omitted the word Russian.
db11
@Adam L Silverman: Got it, thanks.
Adam L Silverman
All of Ukraine is now under air raid alert.
Adam L Silverman
I’ve updated the actual post and it includes the air raid alert map as of 9:58 PM EDT.
AlaskaReader
Thanks Adam
Adam L Silverman
@AlaskaReader: You’re welcome.
Damien
Man, Netanyahu really speed ran the Bush Iraq war fuck up playbook, didn’t he?
I think he’s a monster and even I was on Israel’s side here initially; amazing job turning me against them.
one might even say heckuva job, Binny
Adam L Silverman
@Damien: The Likud think tank Bibi created came up with the Bush 43 Iraq war screw up. Then laundered it through Bill Kristol’s Project for a New American Century.
Parfigliano
@Adam L Silverman: This is the result of Isreal never being held to account for anything ever.
Damien
@Adam L Silverman: That is both outrageous and unsurprising. Turds of a feather and all that.
Out of curiosity, I recently read a book called Legacy of Ashes, which depicts the American intelligence community as practically Keystone Kops level of dim witted, stumbling from failure to failure mostly in secret for the last ~80 years. While the book is mostly focused on the CIA, it very much made it sound like we’ve developed a system under which you are only rewarded for telling those in power what they want to hear rather than what’s true, and that analysis has never been a successful aspect of our clandestine services.
do you have any thoughts on that depiction? Or maybe some shading or nuance?
Martin
@Adam L Silverman: Nice to know we can count on everyone to be a fuckup of equal caliber on this stuff.
suzcamoo
This is gut-wrenching.
And thanks, Adam.
Comrade Bukharin
@Adam L Silverman: Kristol has a lot to answer for, even though he’s a Never Trumper now. He also gave the world Sarah Palin.
Carlo Graziani
@Adam L Silverman: Likud was essentially the foreign-policy arm of the Republican party since at least the Clinton administration. In a very real sense, that is the most coherent understanding of Neo-Conservativism, and its baleful influence on US foreign policy.
Carlo Graziani
Ukrainian progress in strategic use of drone warfare is a wonder to behold. In 2024, they are providing a limited but effective riposte to Russia’s missile campaign against Ukrainian energy infrastructure by targeting and crippling Russian refinery capacity, at ranges nearing 1000 km from Ukrainian borders. The Russians must be wondering what 2025 will bring. I certainly do.
Carlo Graziani
@Gin & Tonic: Nobody would recognize Wagner’s music nowadays.
Westyny
Thank you, Adam. Johnson is such a moral sink hole.
Chris
@Damien:
Don’t forget to check out the other side of the coin, Enemies: The Story of the FBI, by the same writer.
What’s really striking about Legacy of Ashes is, well, lots of things, but the one I’m thinking of is just how relentlessly the CIA has been under assault from the right for its entire history (and under pressure, by extension, to remake itself into basically a propaganda mouthpiece). Add to that the fact that despite all its critics’ claims, the CIA has in fact been kind of a Republican country club right from the start (Donovan, Dulles, McCone), and the picture ends up looking grimly familiar to anyone who remembers this circus from the media: conservative institution hated by all the other conservatives and under constant attack to prove its conservative bonafides by saying things that are further and further to the right.
Odie Hugh Manatee
I don’t say this enough but thank you, Adam. Grim stuff but something we need to know and you are a great resource here!
Some dark humor regarding the attack on the Morozovsk Ruzzian air base and a translation from Ruzzian:
“On April 4th, 2024, the base was absolutely impregnated by Ukrainian drones.”
I wonder if a condom over the base would have helped? Better than their missiles…lol
Debbie (Aussie)
@Parfigliano: Gee, that sounds familiar, doesn’t it!