Vladimir Putin has ignored Donald Trump’s warning for him to stop “pounding” Ukraine as Russian forces unleashed more nightmarish bombing raids on civilians overnight.
Brutal shelling in Dobropillia, Donetsk killed at least 11 people and left 30 more injured, including five children. Horrifying footage shows how eight five-storey buildings were razed to the ground.
Vladimir Putin has ignored Donald Trump’s warning for him to stop “pounding” Ukraine as Russian forces unleashed more nightmarish bombing raids on civilians overnight.
Brutal shelling in Dobropillia, Donetsk killed at least 11 people and left 30 more injured, including five children. Horrifying footage shows how eight five-storey buildings were razed to the ground
At least nine others were killed elsewhere in the Donetsk region. Authorities said there were at least 42 injured as fires continued to burn in the early hours of this morning. According to Ukrainian reports, the dead were civilians
Preliminary reports suggest the Russians used an Iskander-M missile, Tornado-S MRLS, and Shahed 136 killer drones. Donetsk Governor Vadym Filashkin urged remaining residents of Dobropillia – some 12 miles from the frontline – to flee to safer regions. Dobropillia is geographically close to the rare metals deposits Trump is seeking to get rights to exploit from President Volodymyr Zelensky.
A separate Russian drone strike on the Kharkiv region killed three, said Oleg Sinegubov, head of the regional military administration. “The death toll has risen to three. All are civilian men,” he said.
Putin also staged an attack on civilian and industrial facilities in Odesa, triggering fires. A video showed the horrific moment a Russian drone hit a car in Odesa, a strike which the driver miraculously survived
Zelensky – who is due in Saudi Arabia on Monday where Ukraine will start talks with the Americans – hit out at the latest Russian aggression. He said: “Such strikes show that Russia’s goals are unchanged. It is very important to continue to do everything to protect life, strengthen our air defence, and tighten sanctions against Russia. Everything that helps Putin finance the war must break down.”
The onslaught came after Trump blocked Ukraine receiving US intelligence, meaning Russia can launch missile strikes without warning. Trump has also effectively grounded Ukraine’s Western-supplied long range missiles by refusing to supply key mapping data needed for targeting
On Friday, Trump complained Russia was “absolutely pounding” Ukraine, and threatened new sanctions if it did not stop. Yet, he added that he was finding it “more difficult, frankly, to deal with Ukraine” than Russia.
“I actually think he’s doing what anybody else would do,” Trump said of Putin. “Probably anybody in that position would be doing that right now.” The US president added: “I think he’s going to be more generous than he has to be.”
