August 12, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

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Ukraine is telling people in this city to flee, but many are not listening
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What we covered here

  • The “alarming” situation at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia?nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine has reached a “grave hour,” the head of the UN nuclear watchdog said, as he called for an immediate inspection by international experts.
  • The city of Nikopol — across the Dnipro river from the plant — was hit again by Russian rockets overnight, according to Ukrainian authorities. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has claimed Russia?is maximizing the risk?of a nuclear disaster by turning the plant’s site into a “battlefield.”
  • In the east of the country, the Ukrainian military said intense shelling and airstrikes were felt across the entire eastern frontline, with Russian forces making gains near?the town of Bakhmut. At least two people were killed and 13 civilians were injured in an attack on Kramatorsk, a Ukrainian official said.
  • A cargo ship arrived in Ukraine on Friday that will deliver 23,000 metric tons of grain to Ethiopia. The UN says the “ripple effect” of the war in Ukraine threatens to worsen a food crisis sparked by conflict and drought in the East African country.
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1 dead and 2 injured following rocket attack on city of Zaporizhzhia, city official says

A woman who was injured in a rocket attack on Zaporizhzhia earlier on Friday died on her way to a hospital, according to Secretary of the Zaporizhzhia City Council Anatoly Kurtev.?

Kurtev?said two other people were injured with shrapnel wounds?and are currently receiving medical assistance at a hospital.??

“We express out condolences to the relatives and friends of the deceased,” said Kurtev.?“Russians will pay cruelly for every lost life and every tear,” he added.?

To note: The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is not located in the city of Zaporizhzhia, but in Enehodar. The cities are both in the Zaporizhzhia region.

Cargo ship arrives in Ukraine to deliver vital grain to Ethiopia

The Brave?Commander?arrives to the sea port of Pivdennyi in the Odesa region of Ukraine on Friday, August 12.

A cargo ship called the Brave Commander arrived at the port of Pivdennyi?in Ukraine on Friday.?It will soon deliver grain to Ethiopia, according to?Oleksandr Kubrakov, Ukraine’s minister of infrastructure.

The Liberian-flagged ship will carry more than 23,000 tons of grain to East Africa and is chartered by the UN World Food Programme, according to Ukraine’s Ministry of Infrastructure.

Reuters reports it’s the first Africa-bound ship to carry grain from Ukraine since the Russian invasion began.

Some background: Conflict in the north and a drought in the south have pushed about 20 million people to a?vulnerable and precarious humanitarian situation?in Ethiopia, which, according to the United Nations, has been made worse by the war in Ukraine.?

“The ripple effect of the war in Ukraine is set to exacerbate Ethiopia’s food security crisis,” the UN said in?a report published in June. “With over three-quarters of [World Food Programme] and government wheat – a country staple – coming from Ukraine or Russia, the precarious situation there is threatening to push its cost, as well as that of fertilizer, beyond the means of millions of Ethiopian farmers.”

At least 2 dead and 13 injured in Kramatorsk shelling, according to regional official

Debris is cleared next to a crater caused by a rocket strike on a house in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, Friday, August 12.

At least two people were killed and 13 civilians were injured in an attack on Kramatorsk in eastern Ukraine on Friday, according to?Pavlo Kyrylenko, the Ukrainian head of the Donetsk regional military administration.

The shelling damaged at least 20 residential buildings and sparked a fire.?A rescue operation is underway.

On Thursday: The Ukrainian military repelled assaults by Russian forces in the east, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said in an update Thursday evening.?

“The occupiers unsuccessfully tried to improve the tactical position” near the city of Kramatorsk, but they were “pushed back,” it said. The Ukrainian military said intense shelling and airstrikes were felt across the entire eastern front line.?

Ukraine says Russian forces are making gains near the eastern Ukrainian town of Bakhmut?

The Ukrainian military says Russian forces are making gains?near?the eastern Ukrainian town of Bakhmut.

“In the direction of Pokrovske — Bakhmut, the enemy had partial success and is trying to gain a foothold,” said general staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in a statement on Friday.?

A CNN team in the town of Bakhmut heard grad, artillery, anti aircraft gunfire, heavy machine gun fire and small arms fire. Some civilians still remain in the town where most shops are closed and some streets are blocked by cement blocks and other barricades. The CNN team saw military convoys heading into the town as ambulances drove out.?

The Ukrainian military also said that it was able to repel Russian advances toward the town from different directions.?

“With offensive and assault actions, the Russian occupiers unsuccessfully tried to break through the defense of our units and advance in the direction of the settlements of Spirne, Ivano-Dariivka, Vyimka, Yakovlivka, Kodema, Vershyna, and Zaitseve. They suffered losses and left chaotically. Fighting continues in some areas,” the military said.?

The Ukrainian military said intense shelling and airstrikes were felt across the entire eastern frontline.?

Russian journalist who protested Ukraine war live on TV placed under house arrest

Former Russian state TV editor?Marina?Ovsyannikova, stands inside a defendants' box during a court session over charges of "discrediting" the Russian army, in Moscow, on August 11.

A Moscow court has placed former Russian state TV editor Marina Ovsyannikova under house arrest for two months pending a trial related to her anti-war protest in July, the press service of the court said in a statement Thursday.

According to the statement, Ovsyannikova has been charged with spreading fake news about the Russian military and has been placed under house arrest until October 9.?

The offense is punishable by up to 10 years in prison by the Russian law.

Ovsyannikova, who previously worked as an editor for Russian state TV Channel One, took a dramatic stand against Russia’s war in Ukraine during a live broadcast in March when she broke into the studio and appeared behind a news anchor with a sign that said: “NO WAR.”

She previously told CNN she had already received three fines for a total sum of 120,000 rubles (about $1,970) for her anti-war statements, including for allegedly “discrediting” the army in her Facebook post she published on Russia Day.

During her hearing, Ovsyannikova held a sign saying, “May the dead children haunt you in your dreams,” in a protest against Russian military actions in Ukraine.???

Videos on social media showed Ovsyannikova, a?former Russian state TV editor, holding the hand-written sign in Russian from inside the glass cage of the courtroom. Security personnel put their hands on the glass trying to block the sign from being visible.?

Ovsyannikova’s?lawyer Dmitry Zakhvatov?confirmed to CNN that she held up the protest sign on Thursday in the court.

Satellite image shows burnt remains of Russian military tent targeted by Ukraine strike?at Zaporizhzhia plant

A destroyed Russian tent is seen in a Planet Labs satellite image of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant from Aug. 7, following a targeted strike by the Ukrainian military.

The burnt remains of a Russian military tent, targeted by a Ukrainian military strike, can be seen in a Planet Labs satellite image of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant from Aug. 7.?

The military strike occurred on July 19, according to the mayor of Enerhodar, the town where the nuclear power plant is located.?At the time, Mayor Dmytro Orlov said an unexplained incident caused at least nine Russian soldiers to be injured and killed an unknown amount of soldiers.?

The same area is pictured on July 3 in a satellite image from Planet Labs.

On July 22, Defence Intelligence of Ukraine released a video that showed a military strike among an area of tents on the Zaporizhzhia plant compound.?The tents — as well as the Ukrainian strike — were located just under 1,000 feet from one of the nuclear reactors.??

The video showed at least three tent structures were burned.?The Ukrainian intelligence agency claimed the strike killed three Russian soldiers and injured 12.?

Ukrainian officials expect Russians to begin trials of prisoners of war this month

Ukrainian officials say they expect the Russians to begin trials for Ukrainian prisoners of war later this month, with the first tribunals taking place in Mariupol.

Vadym Boichenko, the mayor of Mariupol, said Friday at a media briefing that the “Russians plan to hold a trial of Ukrainian prisoners of war in Mariupol on the Independence Day of Ukraine, August 24.”

“The occupiers are turning the Mariupol Philharmonic Hall, the pearl of the city, where only festive events took place, into a place of trial for our prisoners of war and civilians,” he said.

Boichenko said, “There are different dates, but they are preparing. In this way, the invaders try to create ‘victories’ for their consumers, since they have no real victories at the front.”

Officials of the self-declared Donetsk People’s Republic, which is supported by Russia, have also indicated that trials will begin soon.

“The timing of the tribunal for the Ukrainian military and militants will be determined after the completion of the comprehensive work of the investigators,” Denis Pushilin, the head of the DPR, said on Russian television earlier this week.

“Comprehensive preparations for the tribunal are under way … I won’t say for sure about the timing, because it still depends on the investigators. As soon as the investigators give the go-ahead,” Pushilin said.

He also said that?an air defense group has been strengthened in the area of the isolation blocks where Ukrainian prisoners of war are kept.

A correspondent with the Russian Defense Ministry’s channel Zvezda reported from outside the Philharmonic Hall in Mariupol this week, noting that a?“huge metal frame is being built next to the Philharmonic. This is a future hangar, where prison wagons with Azov prisoners of war will presumably come by.”

It's mid-afternoon in Kyiv. Here's what you need to know

The Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in southeastern Ukraine is at threat of running afoul of radiation and fire safety standards after subsequent Russian bombing.

Here are the latest developments:

  • Zaporizhzhia Plant: After attacks on the nuclear power plant last week, the city of Nikopol — across the Dnipro river from the plant — was again hit by Russian rockets overnight. On Friday, Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi said there was “no adequate control” over the plant, which has been operating at reduced capacity since been overtaken by Russian forces in March. According to Ukrainian nuclear power operator, Energoatom, the plant is now operating “with the risk of violating radiation and fire safety standards,” due to parts of the facility being “seriously damaged during the shelling,” which both countries are accusing the other for. Meanwhile, pro-Russian official Vladimir Rogov in the occupied Zaporizhzhia region administration has said that the plant may be “mothballed” so “nothing happens.”
  • Grain scheduled for Ethiopia: Ukraine’s Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov?announced in a tweet on Thursday that a ship taking 23,000 tons of grain to Ethiopia would be arriving in Ukraine for loading on Friday. In June, the UN said war in Ukraine worsened the humanitarian crisis in the African nation, where 20 million people are suffering the from “food security crisis.”
  • Corn heads to Iran and Turkey: According to Turkey’s Defense Ministry, two ships carrying corn left Ukraine on Friday carrying over 63,000 metric tons.
  • Protesting Russian journalist charged: Former Russian state TV editor?Marina Ovsyannikova?has been placed under house arrest until October 9 pending a trial related to her anti-war protest in July, an offense punishable by up to 10 years. In March, Ovsyannikova stood behind a news anchor during a live broadcast with a sign that read: “NO WAR.”
  • Ukraine fights eastern attacks: The Ukrainian military has repelled Russian assaults in the east, “pushing back” forces near the city Kramatorsk, according to its General Staff, adding that they were also successful in defending attacks towards Bakhmut and Avdiivka.

Senior pro-Russian official badly injured in Melitopol attack, claims city's mayor

A leading pro-Russian official has been seriously injured in a sabotage attack in the Russian occupied city of Melitopol, the city’s mayor has claimed.

Ivan Fedorov said on his Telegram channel that “one of the heads of the election headquarters of ‘United Russia’ [Russia’s ruling party]” had been severely injured in an attack Friday morning.

Fedorov, who is not in the city, named the official as Oleg Shostak and said was head of the propaganda department.

There had been an “explosive warning from the Melitopol underground resistance movement,” Fedorov said.

CNN is unable to confirm the report.

Fedorov also claimed that the main headquarters of the ‘United Russia’ party in Melitopol had been blown up earlier this week, and that the home of a woman collaborating with the Russians in preparing for a referendum had been burned down.

On Tuesday, Fedorov said that that resistance and attacks continue in the city, with Russian troops there being reinforced.

“We are grateful to hundreds of citizens of Melitopol who inform us about activists and members of election committees every day. None of your messages go unnoticed,” Fedorov ended his message by saying.

Ukrainian nuclear operator says Zaporizhzhia plant at "risk of violating radiation" safety standards

The Ukrainian nuclear power operator, Energoatom, says that as of Friday, the nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia “operates with the risk of violating radiation and fire safety standards.”

Energoatom alleged the shelling of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) by Russian forces last week, and over ten “arrivals” near the plant, close to the first power unit on Thursday, “caused a serious risk to the safe operation of the plant.”

“As a result of the attack on the Zaporizhzhia NPP, the emergency protection on one of the power units was activated; one of the three operating power units is now disconnected,” Energoatom said on its Telegram channel.?

While the plant is under Russian control, most of the technicians are still Ukrainian. The Russian side has claimed that it is the Ukrainians who are shelling the territory of the power plant.?

Energoatom said the nitrogen-oxygen station, the domestic sewage pumping station, and the combined auxiliary building were seriously damaged during the shelling, as well as “three radiation monitoring sensors around the dry storage of spent nuclear fuel site of the ZNPP.”

The operator added that the fire department located outside the ZNPP is intended for “protection from fires and their extinguishing in case of emergency situations at the station, was also fired upon.”

CNN is unable to confirm the details provided by Energoatom, but the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, said on Thursday that some parts of the plant were inoperable.

Energoatom reported that “the Ukrainian staff of the station continues to work and make every effort to ensure nuclear and radiation safety, as well as eliminate the consequences of damage.”

“Currently, the Zaporizhzhia NPP continues to operate and produce electricity for the needs of the domestic power system.”

Zaporizhzhia plant may be "mothballed," says pro-Russian official in Ukraine

A local pro-Russian official in occupied Ukraine has suggested the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant may be “mothballed.”

Vladimir Rogov, an official with the Russian-backed Zaporizhzhia region administration, did not specify what that would entail on Friday.

“The load on the nuclear power plant is minimal, the output is minimal, there is a way of preserving what is, so that nothing happens,” Rogov said in an interview with Rossiya 24 channel.

Russian officials have previously suggested that the power produced at Zaporizhzhia – the largest nuclear power plant in Europe with six reactors – will be diverted away from the Ukrainian grid to Crimea.

CNN has reached out to Russia’s state nuclear operator Rosatom for comment.

A recent rise in shelling around the plant has led to the damage of its facilities and communications, with both sides blaming each other.

Rogov added that there had been “constant damage to the power [transmission] line of 750 kilovolts.”

Earlier Friday, Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi accused Russian forces of shelling the plant’s power unit.

"No adequate control" over operations at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, Ukraine says

There is “no adequate control” over operations at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi said Friday.

The plant has been held by Russian forces since its capture in March but has continued operating at reduced capacity, largely by Ukrainian civilian technicians.

A recent uptick in artillery and mortar fire to the plant’s surrounding area led the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)?to state that the “alarming” situation had reached a “grave hour” on Thursday.

Repeating that the Ukrainian government has already appealed to the IAEA to ensure proper control over the plant, Monastyrskyi said that his ministry “is preparing for any scenario.”

“There is no adequate control over the operations at Zaporizhzhia NPP,” Monastyrskyi said in a Facebook post. “Now, it is actually not just in the hands of the enemy, but also in the hands of untrained specialists who can really allow a tragedy.”

“Those Ukrainian specialists who remained there are partially not allowed to the areas where they should be. As is known, military equipment of the Russian Federation is located on the territory of the station now. All this is assessed as the highest level of threat,” he added.

Both sides have blamed each other for putting the plant at risk, with Monastyrskyi accusing Russian forces of shelling the plant’s power unit.

Zelensky warns officials not to reveal military tactics against Russia

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during his evening video message on Thursday August 11.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned Ukrainian officials to stop talking about the military campaign against Russia, saying that war was “definitely not the time for vanity and loud statements.”

In a video message on Thursday, Zelensky sternly addressed military commanders and state officials.

“The less concrete details you give about our defense plans, the better it will be for the implementation of those defense plans,” Zelensky.

“You should feel your responsibility for every word you say about what our state prepares for in defense or counteroffensives.”

Zelensky’s remarks come after a senior Ukrainian commander spoke at length about plans to liberate the southern city of Kherson from Russian forces by the end of the year.

In an interview, Major General Dmytro?Marchenko spoke about Ukrainian operations to?disable bridges across the River Dnipro used by Russian forces to resupply their units in Kherson. “I want to convey to the people of Kherson … it will not be as long as everyone expects. It will be fast,” Marchenko said.

Zelensky did not mention Marchenko by name in his video address but Ukrainian defence officials said that investigations into “a high-ranking military officer” were underway.

Shelling hits city across river from Russian-occupied nuclear power plant, Ukraine says

A view of the damage following an attack by Russian forces in Nikopol, Ukraine on August 11.

The city of Nikopol in southeastern Ukraine, located across the Dnipro?river from the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, came under attack again by Russian rockets overnight, according to Ukrainian authorities.

Valentyn Reznichenko, head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration, said the Russian army hit two districts of the city with Grad rockets and artillery, while up to 40 rockets landed in nearby Marganets, injuring three people.

The Nikopol area has been hit almost every night by Russian rockets and artillery based close to the nuclear power plant, Ukrainian officials say.

Some context: The Zaporizhzhia plant, the largest of its kind in Europe, has continued operating at reduced capacity since Russian forces captured it early in March. The head of the UN nuclear watchdog on Thursday warned that parts of the plant had been knocked out due to recent attacks, risking an “unacceptable” potential radiation leak.

Russia and Ukraine have so far been unwilling to agree to an IAEA inspection of the plant and have accused each other of shelling the facility — action the IAEA has said breaches “indispensable nuclear safety and security pillars.”

2 more grain ships have departed from Ukraine, Turkey says

Two more cargo ships carrying more than 63,000 metric tons of grain departed from Ukraine on Friday, according to Turkey’s Defense Ministry

The Marshall Islands-flagged Star Laura, carrying 60,150 metric tons of corn, left the Ukrainian port of?Yuzhne for Iran,?the ministry said.?It added that another vessel, the Belize-flagged Sormovskiy 121, with 3,050 metric tons of corn aboard, departed from?Chornomorsk port for Tekirdag in Turkey.

Two more arrivals: In a statement, the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) that oversees Ukrainian grain exports said it had authorized two cargo ships to travel to the port of Odesa, pending inspections on Friday. The JCC was one of the key creations of the grain deal agreed last month between Russia and Ukraine under the auspices of the UN and Turkey.

Grain for Ethiopia: Ukraine’s Minister of Infrastructure tweeted Thursday that the country was awaiting the arrival of the cargo ship Brave Commander to load more than 23,000 metric tons of grain for export to Ethiopia. The UN says the “ripple effect” of the war in Ukraine threatens to worsen a food crisis sparked by conflict and drought in the East African country.

Ukrainian nuclear plant facing "grave hour," UN watchdog says

The?Zaporizhzhia?Nuclear Power Plant is seen on August, 4, outside the Russian-controlled city of Enerhodar in the?Zaporizhzhia?region, Ukraine.

The “alarming” situation at a Russian-occupied nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine had reached a “grave hour,” the head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog said Thursday, as he called for an immediate inspection of the facility by international experts.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi warned that parts of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant had been knocked out due to recent attacks, risking an “unacceptable” potential radiation leak.

“IAEA experts believe that there is no immediate threat to nuclear safety,” but “that could change at any moment,” Grossi said.

Ukraine and Russia blame each other: The Zaporizhzhia facility — the largest nuclear plant in Europe — occupies an extensive site on the Dnipro river near the Russian-occupied city of Enerhodar. It has continued operating at reduced capacity since Russian forces captured it early in March, with Ukrainian technicians remaining at work.

Russia and Ukraine have so far been unwilling to agree to an IAEA inspection of the plant and have accused each other of shelling the facility — action the IAEA has said breaches “indispensable nuclear safety and security pillars.”

Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia on Thursday blamed Ukraine for the shelling and urged Kyiv’s supporters to stop attacks and prevent a disastrous radiation leak.

But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky pointed the finger at Moscow, which he said was putting all of Europe in danger.

More shelling: Ukraine’s nuclear agency Energoatom said 10 shells landed near the complex on Thursday, preventing a shift handover.

“For the safety of nuclear workers, the buses with the personnel of the next shift were turned back to Enerhodar,” the agency said. “Until the situation finally normalizes, the workers of the previous shift will continue to work.”

Energoatom said radiation levels at the site remained normal, despite renewed attacks.

Read the full story here.

Ukraine says it repelled Russian assaults in the east

The Ukrainian military has repelled assaults by Russian forces in the east, its General Staff said in an update Thursday evening.?

“The occupiers unsuccessfully tried to improve the tactical position” near the city of Kramatorsk, but they were “pushed back,” it said.

The Ukrainian military also said it was also able to repel Russian forces pushing toward Bakhmut and Avdiivka.

The Ukrainian military said intense shelling and airstrikes were felt across the entire eastern frontline.?

McDonald's is starting to reopen in Ukraine

A man walks past a closed McDonald's restaurant in central Kyiv, Ukraine on February 25.

After closing its restaurants in Ukraine six months ago because of the?Russian invasion, McDonald’s is starting to reopen in parts of the country.

McDonald’s has nearly 110 restaurants in Ukraine. The chain has continued to pay its employees in the country despite the closures.

Read more here.

Ukraine is expecting arrival of ship that will take much-needed grain to Ethiopia

Ukraine is expecting the arrival of a ship that will be taking 23,000 metric tons of grain to Ethiopia, Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov?tweeted?on Thursday.?

Conflict in the north and a drought in the south have pushed about 20 million people to a?vulnerable and precarious humanitarian situation?in Ethiopia, which, according to the United Nations, has been made worse by the war in Ukraine.?

Go Deeper

Russia dangles freedom to prisoners if they fight in Ukraine. Many are taking the deadly gamble.
Seven Russian warplanes were destroyed in huge blasts at Crimean air base, new satellite images show
McDonald’s is starting to reopen in Ukraine
This airline is restarting flights to Russia

Go Deeper

Russia dangles freedom to prisoners if they fight in Ukraine. Many are taking the deadly gamble.
Seven Russian warplanes were destroyed in huge blasts at Crimean air base, new satellite images show
McDonald’s is starting to reopen in Ukraine
This airline is restarting flights to Russia