Ukraine war
Dozens dead in Russian rocket attack near Lviv, where refugees are gathering
Refugees at the train station in Lviv, western Ukraine
© Ukrinform / DPA
Russia is expanding its war of aggression in Ukraine more and more towards the west of the country. Rockets hit the city of Lviv for the first time. The place is just before the Polish border, which is why there are refugees there.
During its war in Ukraine, Russia for the first time carried out a momentous missile attack in the immediate vicinity of the Polish border. At least 35 people died in the attack on a military training area near the city of Lviv in the morning. According to Ukrainian sources, 134 others were injured.
Many refugees in Lviv
The attack near Lviv is particularly explosive. Many refugees are gathering in the city. The Jaworiw training ground is only about 15 kilometers from the Polish border. At least before the war, many NATO instructors were active on it. Videos and photos showed severe destruction. According to regional governor Maxym Kosytskyi, more than 30 rockets were fired. After the attack, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov again called for a no-fly zone over the country.
According to Ukrainian sources, there was heavy fighting in the towns of Irpin and Makariv around the Ukrainian capital. The situation is similar in other villages, the humanitarian situation is getting worse and worse. Around 20,000 people were evacuated on Saturday alone. In the south-east, Russian units are said to be trying to storm the port city of Mariupol, which has been besieged for days and has around 400,000 inhabitants. According to Ukrainian sources, more than 1,500 civilians have already died in Mariupol. In the south, the Russian military is gathering at the industrial city of Krywyj Rih with over 600,000 inhabitants. The information was not independently verifiable.
NATO: Situation will get worse
NATO expects a further intensification of the fighting and the humanitarian emergency. “We are horrified to see the increasing number of civilian casualties and the senseless destruction by the Russian forces,” Secretary General of the military alliance Jens Stoltenberg told the Welt am Sonntag newspaper. The people of Ukraine resisted the invasion with courage and determination, “but the coming days are likely to bring even greater hardship,” he warned.
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Stoltenberg again rejected calls for NATO to enforce a no-fly zone over Ukraine. That would mean that Russian forces would have to be attacked. “And that would risk a direct confrontation and an uncontrollable escalation. We must end this war and not escalate it.” NATO is a defensive alliance. “We are not looking for a conflict with Russia.”
