live blog
Status: 10/02/2022 10:24 am
IAEA chief Grossi has called on Russia to release the director of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant. Defense Minister Lambrecht had to seek shelter in the bunker after an air raid in Odessa. The developments in the live blog.
10:22 a.m
London: Heavy Russian losses withdrawing from Lyman
According to British intelligence services, the Russians suffered high losses when retreating from the strategically important city of Lyman in eastern Ukraine. The city in the eastern region of Donetsk had previously been defended by undermanned Russian units and reservists, according to the daily short report from the British Ministry of Defence. Many soldiers were said to have died when retreating via the only road out of the city that was still under Russian control.
On Saturday – one day after the illegal annexation of several Ukrainian territories – Russia gave up the city of Lyman in a bitter defeat by the Ukrainian army. According to the Russian military, the armed forces have been withdrawn because of the risk of encirclement. Ukrainian authorities had previously spoken of around 5,000 encircled Russian soldiers. So far, however, there has been no concrete information about the number of dead and prisoners.
According to the British, the withdrawal triggered a wave of public criticism of the military leadership in Russian government circles. Further defeats in the regions of the annexed territories are likely to further intensify this and increase the pressure on senior commanders.
The British Ministry of Defense has published daily information on the course of the war since the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine on February 24, citing intelligence information. In doing so, the British government wants to both counter the Russian portrayal and keep allies in line. Moscow accuses London of a targeted disinformation campaign.
10:16 a.m
Migration researcher fears “historic flight winter”
The migration researcher Gerald Knaus expects a massive increase in the number of refugees in the coming months because of the Ukraine war. “We are facing a historic winter of flight if the situation in Ukraine continues to deteriorate and the supply of heat and electricity does not work in winter because the Russian war of aggression destroys power plants or uses weapons of mass destruction,” Knaus told the newspapers of the Funke media group. “The EU would not be prepared for that now.”
The sociologist criticized that those seeking protection from Ukraine were still very unequally distributed in Europe: “Countries like the Czech Republic and Poland bear the brunt, while countries like France have taken in a fraction of the war refugees.” More European solidarity is needed here. It is not only necessary between the states, but also large cities and municipalities have to build up a network in which the refugees can also be accepted in France or Italy. “Private helpers have shown how it’s done: with transparency, information policy and solidarity,” said the chairman of the European Stability Initiative think tank. “This is the only way to manage this historic reception performance by refugees from Ukraine over the winter.”
09:52 a.m
Grossi calls for the release of the nuclear power plant boss
The head of the UN nuclear regulatory agency IAEA, Rafael Grossi, has called for the release of the director general of the Russian-held Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine. He said his arrest posed a security threat.
The state company responsible for the power plant said on Saturday that a Russian patrol had arrested Ihor Murashov on Friday. Russia confirmed the arrest. “IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi expressed hope that Mr. Murashov can safely and quickly return to his family and resume his vital functions at the facility,” the agency tweeted late Saturday night.
The IAEA has contacted the relevant authorities to clarify Mr. Muraschow’s temporary detention, which the IAEA says has “significant implications” for him and nuclear safety and security standards.
Grossi is expected to hold talks in Moscow and Kyiv next week on establishing a protective zone around the Zaporizhia plant, the watchdog said on Saturday.
1:20 a.m
Odessa: Second air alert for Lambrecht
Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht was woken up early this morning by another air raid alarm in the Ukrainian port city of Odessa. With other members of her delegation, the SPD politician had to seek shelter in the bunker of her hotel shortly before 1 a.m. After about 20 minutes the all clear was given and the minister was able to return to her room. Lambrecht told the dpa news agency that she was surprised by the alarm while she was sleeping.
1:11 am
Ukrainian video to show army control over Lyman
A senior adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksky has posted a video purporting to show the takeover of the city of Lyman. “Dear Ukrainians, today the armed forces of Ukraine retook Lyman and took control,” says a Ukrainian soldier in the video provided by Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the presidential office.
The Defense Ministry in Moscow said troops had been withdrawn from the town of Lyman in Donetsk to avoid encirclement. A spokesman for the Ukrainian army had previously said that the strategically important location was encircled. An independent clarification of the contradictory information was not possible.
conflicting parties as a source
Information on the course of the war, shelling and casualties provided by official bodies of the Russian and Ukrainian conflict parties cannot be directly checked by an independent body in the current situation.