Ukraine in Brief:
53rd day of the Ukrainian people’s heroic struggle against the russian military invasion goes on.
There has been no active enemy action in the north of Ukraine. There is an ongoing possibility of subversion and reconnaissance group deployment by the enemy and missile strikes from russia’s territory on national military and civil infrastructure components in the Chernihiv and Sumy oblasts.
The aggressor continues its partial siege of Kharkiv and attempts fire strikes at positions of Ukrainian military units and critical infrastructure facilities.
The enemy has stepped up military action in the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. Missile and bomb strikes on Mariupol continue. The invaders have attempted an offensive in the seaport and Azovstal Mill area.
There have been reports from the area of Vasylivka, Zaporizhzhya Oblast, of the enemy painting over “Z” letters on its equipment and mounting Ukrainian flags, likely to commit acts of provocation.
In the Mykolayiv Oblast, the enemy continues with efforts to retain the taken positions.
The information about the destruction by Ukraine of the Moskva missile cruiser has been making ripples among the public in Crimea. There is an increasing distrust among the residents of information spread by russian official media.
Due to the lack of personnel, the invaders try recruiting residents from the temporarily occupied territories. E. g., forced mobilization among the men has started in Izyum.
The Ukrainian defenders hold the line and gradually push back enemy troops in specific individual directions.
Northern oblasts
Kyiv Oblast
The russians dealt a missile strike to Brovary in the morning. Some infrastructure facilities were hit.
The Ukrainian services continue mine-clearing of de-occupied territories. Almost 500 UXOs have been rendered safe in the Kyiv Oblast in the past 24 hours.
Zhytomyr Oblast
There were air raid alerts during the night. Zhytomyr City Mayor has repeatedly advised the residents to heed air alerts and never ignore them.
The city bid the last farewell yesterday to Viktor Horoshynyn, a Brigade 95 paratrooper from the Donetsk area, who had been killed in action. The Zhytomyrvodokanal (water management) company staff have been assisting with restoring the main water supply lines in Irpin.
The students and professors of Lyceum 25, which was destroyed by a russian missile strike, can continue training at the premises of one of the VET schools in Zhytomyr.
Chernihiv Oblast
According to the General Staff of Ukraine, there is still a possibility of missile strikes and shelling of civil and military facilities in the Oblast from the territory of russia. The Ukrainian national mail operator, Ukrposhta, is resuming postal services across Oblast.
Sumy Oblast
According to the General Staff of Ukraine, the possibility of missile strikes and artillery shelling of civil and military infrastructure objects from the territory of russia remains possible. Yesterday, more than 300 different russian shells were removed from the fields of Sumy Oblast by pyrotechnicians.
The bus connection between Sumy and Poltava will be resumed on Monday. The bus route will run through Kotelva, Okhtyrka, Trostyanets, and Boromlya.
Sumy City Council announced that on April 18th and 19th, the giveaway of food boxes for children who suffered from war would continue in Sumy.
Eastern oblasts
Kharkiv Oblast
Over the past 24 hours, the russian occupation forces fired 23 times from artillery, mine-throwers, and MLRS systems at the districts of Northern Saltivka, Pyatyhatky, Oleksiyivka, the city center, Kharkiv Tractor Plant, and Derhachi. There was also one missile strike. In total, 31 people, including four children, were injured in the shelling by the russians. 3 civilians were killed.
Today the russians fired at the center of Kharkiv. As a result of the shelling, 5 people were killed, and 13 were injured.
A monument to Zhukov was dismantled in Kharkiv.
Donetsk Oblast
Kramatorsk
The situation is extremely alarming. Two explosions were heard in the city, but no official information about the place of impact and damage was reported. The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) and Territorial Defense Forces are preparing to meet the enemy. The evacuation of the residents continues.
The coordinator of the volunteer initiative “Active Community” was helping to deliver humanitarian aid to a man who was injured in the shelling and is receiving medical care at the traumatology department.
Pokrovsk and Pokrovsk Raion
The enemy is preparing to intensify combat around Avdiyivka and shelling the Pokrovsk Raion settlements. The AFU resist the occupiers. Territorial Defense Forces are patrolling the community around the clock.
Police officers of Kurakhovo and the Pokrovsk community continue to support residents of Novomykhayilivka and Krasnohorivka who remain on the fire line. They brought a new portion of humanitarian aid. Law enforcement officers were offering to evacuate residents of Novomykhaylivka, but people were hesitant to leave their homes.
The last day in the Pokrovsk community was uneasy. Explosions were heard, bringing damage to houses and infrastructure. The special commission is assessing the extent of the damage. No civilians were killed or injured. Utility services continue to operate normally. Most businesses, shops, and pharmacies are currently closed. Humanitarian aid is provided to pensioners.
70% of bomb shelters in Pokrovsk are supplied with necessary things, including water tanks, generators, tools, food, and medical kits. It is not easy to purchase fuel, as most of the facilities with fuel stocks were damaged. Negotiations are underway to provide energy for medical and utility transport in Pokrovsk.
Bakhmut
The situation in the community is tense. Many citizens left the community and moved to safer oblasts. Official sources constantly write about a new attack on Donbas. Residents are being evacuated.
Pavlo Kyrylenko, the Head of the Donetsk Oblast Military Administration, reports on the situation in the Oblast daily. Today the Head of the Oblast said the death of a man in Bakhmut, injured in Luhansk Oblast. The City Council informed residents about the bus’s departure from Bakhmut to Dnipro today for those who want to leave.
Mariupol
The situation remains the direst. Last night, the occupiers announced “granting a corridor for soldiers for are ready to give in for captivity.” But as of today, our defenders continue to protect the city.
Luhansk Oblast
In Severodonetsk, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of russia into Ukraine, a new cemetery has appeared, in which there are already more than 400 graves.
Southern oblasts
Zaporizhzhia Oblast
The situation in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast remains tense, and no significant changes are observed. The russian military continues to shell settlements in the Oblast with the use of aviation, the Grad multiple launch rocket system, tube artillery, 120-mm mortars, and heavy machine guns in the following areas: Huliaipolie, Novoandriivka, Bilohiria, Chervone, Pavlivka, Malynivka, Staromayorsk, Pryiutne, Kamianske, Orikhiv, and Mala Tokmachka. The enemy is cynically destroying civilian infrastructure.
In the temporarily occupied territories of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast, looting and violent actions by russian military personnel against the civilian population continue. These actions are encouraged by the russian army command.
The invaders are spreading fake information that, allegedly, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) are shelling the settlements of the Polohy Raion. It is not true. The units of the State Emergency Service are on high alert and are involved in the elimination of the consequences of hostilities: they destroy the discovered munition and put out fires.
Another team of rosatom state nuclear energy corporation representatives, headed by andrei gorbunov, chief engineer of the rostov NPP, arrived at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (NPP). In the occupied territories, public figures and representatives of the local authorities continue to be abducted, detained, and blackmailed. Today, the head of the village of Kyrylivka, Ivan Maleiev, was kidnapped. It happened after russian troops entered the village.
Yesterday, two enemy missiles were shot down by air defense systems in two districts of Zaporizhzhia. A 29-year-old woman was injured by glass fragments and subsequently taken to the hospital. According to doctors, there is no threat to her life.
Humanitarian corridors in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast did not work today because they disagreed with the russian party on a ceasefire on evacuation routes.
Mykolaiv Oblast
In the Mykolaiv and Kherson oblasts, russian troops are fortifying their positions and shelling settlements with a civilian population. As a result of the shelling, 11 people were injured over the past day.
Odesa Oblast
The situation is under control, and the Oblast keeps the defense. Russian occupation troops continue shelling the Oblast with missiles. There is a possibility of a landing operation. Air defense is actively working. The Territorial Defense Forces are preparing to defend Odesa Oblast from the enemy. Local authorities say they are in control of the situation in the oblast. People are active, united, and engaged in volunteer activities.
The “Active Community” All-Ukrainian Initiative coordinator was busy dealing with humanitarian aid.
Central oblasts
Dnipropetrovsk Oblast
Last night, the enemy fired at the checkpoint and the outskirts of one of the villages in the Kryvyi Rih Raion on the border with the Kherson Oblast. People are safe, and there are no casualties. The police checked more than 150 suspicious persons. The Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) detained a russian fire spotter in the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
Internally displaced persons (IDPs) are temporarily accommodated free of charge in hotels: one located near Dnipro, the other in Kryvyi Rih. People can live there for several weeks until they find permanent housing. Also, one of the driving schools provided a shelter for evacuees from the “hot” spots. Several dozen IDPs found accommodation there. Sleeping bags for the defenders of Ukraine are sewn in the haute couture studio in Dnipro.
Kirovohrad Oblast
The threat of a missile strike remains in the Oblast. One after another, air alarms sounded. The Ukrainian military guards the Oblast’s borders and military facilities. Territorial Defense Forces are on duty at checkpoints and patrol the city with police.
In Olexandria, April 17th is the second day of mourning for the victims of the missile strike at the airfield. In Oleksiyivka (the village of Katepynivka community, Kropyvnytskyi Raion), people paid last respects to 22-year-old killed defender Vladyslav Ishchenko.
In Kropyvnytskyi, the NGO “Tenth of April” provides free legal advice on paperwork and other issues for IDPs. Lawyers of the “Tenth of April” advise IDPs in the Kirovohrad Oblast on the recovery of lost documents, refusal to register as an IDP, applying for housing assistance, other legal advice, and help on any issues.
The Regional Coordinator of AUI “Active Community” in Kropyvnytskyi was on duty at the St. Nicholas the Wonderworker Humanitarian Center at the Nativity of St. John the Baptist Parish of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, where food aid was provided to IDPs.
Poltava Oblast
The police have checked nine people over the past 24 hours. They are suspected of collaborating with the russians. The suspects were taken to police stations. Police officers inspected more than 900 vehicles and more than 1800 suspects per day.
The Facebook page of the Mayor Oleksandr Mamaia was hacked, his press service reported . Volodymyr Musyak, a veteran of the Anti-Terrorist Operation from Poltava Oblast and a member of the Ukrainian team of the Unconquered Games, is taking part in the Invictus Games, which started in The Hague. He will compete in the discipline of archery.
Poltava designers raised 100 000 hryvnias from the sale of a patriotic sticker pack. The funds were directed to the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) and the Territorial Defense Forces of Poltava Oblast.
Some enterprises have fully or partially transferred their production and human resources to Poltava Oblast from other oblasts. Among them, LLC “Velmash-Ukraine” from Dergachi, Kharkiv Oblast. There are also companies specializing in woodworking, household services, and plastic production.
Western oblasts
Lviv Oblast
There were two air raids during the day. There was a threat of an air-missile strike from aircraft from belarus and strategic aviation aircraft of russia.
During the day, about 50 000 oaks and pines were planted on the territory of 10 forestries in Lviv Oblast as part of the “Victory Forest” action. The activity aimed to raise 3 million hryvnias in charitable contributions to purchase ammunition for the Ukrainian military.
In the Lviv Oblast, another 1130 IDPs were received and settled. Yesterday, a group of 540 IDPs from Mariupol traveled safely by train from Zaporizhzhia to Lviv. An evacuation train is planned to take 112 sick children to Lviv from Pokrovsk.
Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast
The situation in the Oblast is stable. The infrastructure works normally. Due to the thaw, in the highlands of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, there is a high probability of avalanches – level III danger.
The Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast Center of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine has published the gamma background results in the Oblast’s settlements. The indicators are within the norm. Mobilization continues in the city. Thus, the main team of the city football club “Prykarpattya” almost in full force, joined the AFU. 14 football players and coaches of the club from the First League took an oath of allegiance to the Ukrainian people. It is almost the first time since the beginning of the war that a football team has made such a decision.
Today in the Potocki Palace for Ivano-Frankivsk residents and guests was a virtual tour of the hero city – Chernihiv. The community regularly hosts other thematic excursions and events for citizens and people who moved to Ivano-Frankivsk due to the war.
The Regional Coordinator of the AUI “Active Community” in Ivano-Frankivsk has found philanthropists who will donate children’s Easter baskets for IDPs who visit her classes. She is currently ready to make 8 baskets. Then she looks for philanthropists who may give small Easter cakes. Such Easter baskets will be presented to children at this week’s themed event.
Rivne Oblast
There was one air alarm. The situation is calm. AFU soldiers patrol the border with belarus. Representatives of the Territorial Defense Forces are patrolling and on duty at checkpoints. The Head of the Rivne Oblast Military Administration said that more than 4000 Easter cakes are planned to be baked in the Rivne Oblast as part of the “Easter for a Friend” campaign, which is being held for the seventh year in a row. Easter cakes have already started to be baked based at the War Veterans Hospital and in the villages of the Bugryn community and surrounding settlements. Citizens are united and help volunteer headquarters financially and immaterially.
Chernivtsi Oblast (Bukovyna)
Tonight an air alarm was sounded twice in Chernivtsi and the Oblast, but the situation is under control.
Recruitment to the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) continues. Bukovyna says goodbye to the heroes who died in the war.
The Mayor of Chernivtsi urges citizens to keep the economic front, and resume the work of enterprises, and pay taxes to local and state budgets. It will allow them to buy weapons, support the army and rebuild Ukraine.
In Chernivtsi, guides have united for a charity event, during which they conduct tours, introduce everyone to the city, and transfer part of the funds to the AFU needs. A charity event, “Ukrainian Children – Ukrainian Book,” was held in Chernivtsi with the support of Ambient Event House, Chernivtsi Oblast Police, the Department of Education and Science of the Chernivtsi Oblast Military Administration, and the State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcasting for Displaced Children. They held competitions, master classes and donated books for children. Singer Alina Grossu, animators, and athletes were also invited to the event.
Today, the AUI “Active Community” regional coordinator assisted IDPs from the Kherson Oblast.
Zakarpattia Oblast
The situation is stable. In the mountains of the Oblast a sharp change in weather. In the Rakhiv Raion, the air temperature dropped to -11, and it is snowing, according to the Montenegrin Mountain Search and Rescue Post.
For the second time, an action to clean up the city by IDPs took place in Uzhhorod. The shores of the Uzh are being cleaned, where garbage is always collected after rain and more. The initiators of the action gathered several dozen activists.
