(Image by NEIVANMADE)
As was the case when I started typing the update last night, right now – 6:00 PM EDT – only the eastern half of Ukraine is under air raid alert. Unfortunately, that didn’t last and all of Ukraine was under air raid alert last night/this morning.
Kharkiv is already being targeted again!
Explosion reported in Kharkiv! https://t.co/Z7U6tayonq
— Iryna Voichuk (@IrynaVoichuk) April 6, 2024
Odesa too!
The view across the street from Пʼяна Вишня in central Odesa. 😂
Blasts at 0:01 and 0:25. Two Iskanders less than 30 seconds apart. https://t.co/eoVBfKQXzM
— Mac William Bishop (@MacWBishop) April 6, 2024
Here’s the butcher’s bill from Russia’s overnight attack on Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia:
Tonight Russia launched 32 drones and six missiles of various types over Ukraine: three S-300, two Kh-101/Kh-555 and one Kalibr. Air defense forces destroyed two Kh-101/Kh-555 cruise missiles, Kalibr and 28 drones. pic.twitter.com/orAI401Aj4
— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) April 6, 2024
The S-300s and four of the drones got through.
Yet another massive Russian missile attack on Ukraine last night.
◾️In Kharkiv, 6 people dead and 10 injured. Drones hit a residential area – at least 9 apartments buildings, three dorms, administrative building, vehicles, etc. are damaged.
◾️In Zaporizhzhia, 4 people dead… pic.twitter.com/NYEC9H7s1x
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) April 6, 2024
Yet another massive Russian missile attack on Ukraine last night.
◾️In Kharkiv, 6 people dead and 10 injured. Drones hit a residential area – at least 9 apartments buildings, three dorms, administrative building, vehicles, etc. are damaged.
◾️In Zaporizhzhia, 4 people dead and 23 wounded. At least five Russian missiles were targeted at Zaporizhzhia.
◾️In total, Ukrainian defense shot down 28 Russian drones and 3 cruise missiles. Air defense worked in several regions of Ukraine.
These horrible numbers are becoming a mundane reality. We need air defense systems to stop these murders of innocent people.
Here is President Zelenskyy’s address from earlier today. Video below, English transcript after the jump.
I thank everyone who preserves normal living – address by the President of Ukraine
6 April 2024 – 20:47
Dear Ukrainians!
Important words of gratitude for today and this week. Gratitude to everyone in Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Odesa, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Donetsk region, and all border communities. To those who work after Russian strikes, who help people, who clear debris, who restore normal living. To all our rescuers from Ukraine’s State Emergency Service, medical workers, police officers, energy workers, repair teams, municipal crews, and volunteers. I thank everyone who preserves normal living.
Last night and this afternoon – new Russian strikes on Kharkiv. Cruel, vile strikes. Almost everything they have was used: surface-to-air missiles, Shahed drones, and aerial bombs. Another missile strike on Odesa. Just a vile strike yesterday on Zaporizhzhia. Among the victims were journalists who were on the scene, documenting the aftermath of the first strike. And then there was a repeated strike.
Currently, correspondent Olha Zvonariova from the Ukrinform agency is still in intensive care. TSN correspondent Kira Oves was also injured. I wish them and all affected a speedy recovery.
We will strike back at Russia for every attack, for every act of terror against our people and state. Ukraine’s defense and security forces are working on this.
Now I want to personally single out those of our people who have particularly distinguished themselves these days, helping save lives after Russian strikes.
Zaporizhzhia – these are rescuers Borys Serdiuk, Dmytro Borodatyi, Oleksandr Kulenko, and our police officers Andrii Hrachov and Mykhailo Malakhov. They were among the first to arrive and provide assistance even despite the repeated strikes. Emergency workers from Zaporizhzhia, Olena Kostriukova, Yaroslav Bardakov, and Olena Starykovska. Thank you!
Kharkiv – our rescuers Vitalii Shkola, Volodymyr Tyshkov, Maksym Ashymkhin, and Maksym Vasyleha, emergency medical workers Marharyta Artemenko and Oleksandr Bairachnyi, our police officers Ruslan Osmanov and Roman Shapovalov. I thank all of you and your colleagues!
Every week there is a reason to commend the workers in Kherson region. Ukraine’s State Emergency Service, particularly firefighters, our rescuers Artem Kovalchuk and Dmytro Pryshko, Oleksii Fedko. Police sergeants Serhii Drozd and Bohdan Kot. I thank all the doctors, all the hospital nurses, and all the volunteers who support healthcare in Kherson region. And especially deserving of gratitude this week are Yurii Shashkin, Viktoriia Hanzha, Oksana Horban. Thank you!
Our state’s resilience is made up of the expertise and dedication of people like you throughout the country, many of those who do everything within their power to ensure that life prevails despite all the circumstances of war.
We’ll go above and beyond to ensure that the world continues to support Ukraine and truly sees how heroic our people are, how Ukrainians defend their state, their cities, and villages, how they rebuild their lives despite everything, and how they defeat the occupier. That’s exactly what Russia deserves – Russia deserves to lose for what it is doing, for its terror.
I thank every our soldier who fights for Ukraine. I thank everyone who works to ensure that Ukraine can endure and prevail. I thank everyone who cares for their neighbor and all of Ukraine.
Glory to Ukraine!
Thank you!
He also sat for an interview with the Unified News Telethon.
Ukraine is expecting a positive decision from the U.S. Congress regarding the adoption of a comprehensive aid package. This was stated by Volodymyr Zelenskyy in an interview with the Unified News telethon.
The President emphasized that assistance from the United States is crucial for our country.
“We understand when the Russians could start counteroffensive actions. So, here is your answer, when it is critical to receive the necessary weaponry being in low supply. Without this money, we cannot obtain such volumes. And I still believe that we will be able to achieve a positive vote from the U.S. Congress,” said Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Ukraine regularly informs the American side about the situation on the front line and the defense forces’ urgent needs. Macro-financial assistance from the United States will strengthen the economy of the state and our Armed Forces.
Here’s the video with English subtitles:
The reason:
This is what Ukraine is fighting for.
Warrior Dad meets his baby daughter for the first time.
📹: yulychka__/TikTok pic.twitter.com/h0z5ww4Y53
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) April 5, 2024
"That's our job, you know? Someone is fighting on the frontline, and we have our own front."
Workers of Ukrainian thermal power plants speak about Russian attacks on energy infrastructure.
📹: DW https://t.co/0WjniJANXI pic.twitter.com/xVP45kwGpz
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) April 6, 2024
The price:
The filmmaker will need around EUR 9.300 to get this film going. Roman is such a fantastic kid and one of the reasons why I‘m helping 🇺🇦 How he manages his life with his dad is so unbelievably encouraging. Please friends and #NAFO fellas BOOST 🙏🏻 2/2
— La.K.Leu🎗 (@La_K_Leu) April 5, 2024
Unfortunately, it does still not look like a supplemental aid package is going to be brought up in the House. The Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Republican Congressman McCaul, states that this is because the GOP is now en thrall to Russian propoganda.
When a top Republican says Russian propaganda has infected the GOP https://t.co/KGAFIUwIoW
— Loren Jenkins (@lbjenkins) April 6, 2024
The Washington Post has the details:
“These fictions are harmful even if they’re deployed for purely domestic political purposes,” she added.
Republicans on the committee blanched at the suggestion that they had served as conduits for Russian misinformation, but Hill refused to back down.
Five years later, Republicans are starting to grapple more publicly with the idea that this kind of thing is happening in their ranks.
The most striking example came this week. In an interview with Puck News’s Julia Ioffe, Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Tex.) — none other than the GOP chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee — flat-out said that Russian propaganda had “infected a good chunk of my party’s base.”
McCaul suggested conservative media was to blame.
“There are some more nighttime entertainment shows that seem to spin, like, I see the Russian propaganda in some of it — and it’s almost identical [to what they’re saying on Russian state television] — on our airwaves,” McCaul said.
He also cited “these people that read various conspiracy-theory outlets that are just not accurate, and they actually model Russian propaganda.”
Asked which Republicans specifically he was talking about, McCaul said it was “obvious,” before staff intervened and asked that the conversation go off the record.
These comments are the most significant to date, but they’re not the only ones.
A GOP impasse over additional funding for Ukraine’s defense against Russia — combined recently with Tucker Carlson’s deeply weird promotion of Russia and Trump’s comments about not defending NATO allies from Moscow — has apparently occasioned some self-reflection among Republicans about their colleagues and allies:
Here’s some more evidence of the negative effects that are occurring:
"If we have shells, we will have everything. The situation is bad, not enough shells. They were scarce before, and now…"
Ukrainian Defender Oleksandr shares about the situation on the frontlines.
📹: DW pic.twitter.com/bjbTy6rs7y
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) April 6, 2024
Lithuania:
We are grateful for your steadfast support!
🇺🇦🤝🇱🇹 https://t.co/AoOdAJOIH8— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) April 6, 2024
Holland:
The Netherlands will provide 24 F-16 aircraft to Ukraine – Dutch defense minister Kajsa Ollongren.
"Ukraine is fighting but it's a war for freedom, democracy, rule of law and against illegal aggression. And that's why we're ready to support Ukraine and that's why we're doing… pic.twitter.com/Q3Qp8mblyW
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) April 6, 2024
Trerny, Kreminna front:
Azov and 95st Brigade of Ukraine repelling Russian attack on Kreminna front, Trerny area. 11 Russian AFVs were lost during this attempted attack.
Also, the tank crew of the @azov_media managed to capture one of the Russian tanks. Which is a very rare case in the current period… https://t.co/ItYFTEczfj pic.twitter.com/BSGSPPJlDb
— Special Kherson Cat 🐈🇺🇦 (@bayraktar_1love) April 6, 2024
Azov and 95st Brigade of Ukraine repelling Russian attack on Kreminna front, Trerny area. 11 Russian AFVs were lost during this attempted attack.
Also, the tank crew of the @azov_media
managed to capture one of the Russian tanks. Which is a very rare case in the current period of war.
It’s even more interesting that Azov managed to capture the tank with “Monster EW system”, which attracted a lot of media attention recently.(Tank is being evacuated by Azov starting from 1:52 on the video)
/3. Captured components of the Russian “Monster EW”. The system was damaged by FPV drone strikes, which were published earlier. https://t.co/yugzl2BKFD pic.twitter.com/CcK8da2J0o
— Special Kherson Cat 🐈🇺🇦 (@bayraktar_1love) April 6, 2024
Here’s the full text of the second tweet:
/2. “The Monster EW system” footages that appeared a day ago.
This system consists of many EW systems/drone jammers that operate at different frequencies. Unlike the already classic version when the EW system is powered directly from the equipment on which it is installed, in this case an additional external generator can be seen on the tank. This means that the electronic warfare system can operate after the tank itself is disabled and abandoned, as long as the generator continues working.
Russian IFV hits a mine after which artillery targets infantry which left the vehicle. Terny area, Kreminna front, by the 45th Brigade. https://t.co/QeAcYDQhMl pic.twitter.com/Zwymp3Hezh
— Special Kherson Cat 🐈🇺🇦 (@bayraktar_1love) April 6, 2024
The Bakhmut front:
Russian losses during recent attempted attack on the Bakhmut front shown in the Achilles video.
14 total losses identified on the video:
1x BTR-MDM – destroyed;
6xBMP-2 – destroyed;
1xBMP-2 – damaged;
5xBMD-2 – destroyed;
1xBMD-2 – damaged. https://t.co/iCjq0hh0MX https://t.co/yXPFfL8T1Z pic.twitter.com/b0Q5SD0UBb— Special Kherson Cat 🐈🇺🇦 (@bayraktar_1love) April 6, 2024
Here’s the full text of the quoted tweet:
Footages of the repelling of the recent Russian attack on the Bakhmut front, by the Achilles unit of the 92nd Brigade of Ukraine.
The video shows 14 Russian IFV losses as a result of this attack. Fighters of the Achilles say that their unit destroyed 10 AFVs during the day of the attack, which is their record by now.
Russian column consisted mainly of BMPs and BMDs.
Desertcrosses also took part in the attack. The destruction of one of those along with Russian infantry on board can be seen on video (0:58)
https://t.me/fedorenkoys/285
Orsk, Russia:
On April 5th, a dam breach occurred on the Ural River near Orsk, Russia, after water was released from the reservoir. Satellite images from Planet Labs show severe flooding of residential areas. If Russia cared more about its people and not war, such incidents could be prevented pic.twitter.com/puLzd9b1mZ
— Tatarigami_UA (@Tatarigami_UA) April 6, 2024
That’s enough for tonight.
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Here’s some adjacent material from United24 Media, Maria Avdeeva, and the Ukrainian MOD:
For Ukrainians, storks are symbols of birth, family, and love for their homeland.
So when a viral video of a stork mourning its burned nest went viral, Ukrainians decided they had to help. pic.twitter.com/mxyuGTPf8s
— UNITED24 Media (@United24media) April 6, 2024
These storks are coming to Izmail for three decades, symbolizing the city’s resilience. Just like border guard, who redirected Russian warship. His iconic image now covers Shahed drone’s impact on the Danube Shipping Company’s building. pic.twitter.com/gUlv1PzdkF
— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) April 6, 2024
-Will you drive the enemy out of Ukrainian land?
-For sure, fluffy!📷: Burevii Brigade pic.twitter.com/0dYNhBfaQK
— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) April 6, 2024
Open thread!
dimmsdale
thanks, Adam. There is so much to say about the images you post day after day, but … for now, my thanks.
TeezySkeezy
If Fluffy bites a certain part, if a dog does it, is it a war crime? This isn’t a serious question, I’m just blowing off steam…and the right wing fascists gimme plenty o’ that STEAM!!!
Jay
Thank you, Adam.
Nukular Biskits
As always, Adam, excellent round-up.
YY_Sima Qian
These double tap attacks targeting 1st responders are what the Islamic State terrorists might do.
Adam L Silverman
@YY_Sima Qian: They’re what the whit3 supremacist mass shooters do in the US.
Bill Arnold
@YY_Sima Qian:
The history of such attacks is long. PGMs make it straightforward for militaries (or others with PGMs) to perform them at long range. Such attacks are arguably (a strong argument IMO) (intentional) war crimes.
Westyny
Thank you, Adam.
AlaskaReader
Thanks Adam
Sanjeevs
Good article in the FT about Russian glide bombs
https://www.ft.com/content/0d6612f2-5d59-4ce2-bb2f-592309991430