Every day since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, Meduza’s editors select the main military photographs taken the day before. These photographs contain scenes of cruelty, violence and death, but most of them are not placed under a special plate, which is usually used by the editors to hide such images. In this series of materials we try to document the war as it is.
Shot of the day. Consequences of the shelling of Kharkov
Russian troops constantly fire missiles at Kharkov, drop bombs on the city and attack it with attack drones. Dozens of residents were killed and injured, and the city’s energy infrastructure was almost completely destroyed. In Kharkov, due to shelling, there are power outages; the heating season in the city had to be ended ahead of schedule. Meduza’s sources close to the Kremlin stated that the Russian authorities consider Kharkov as one of the targets at this stage of the war. The Economist wrote that Russia, striking the city, is preparing to storm it. However, Meduza military expert Dmitry Kuznets believes that the Russian Armed Forces hardly have the strength for such an operation. You can learn more about this by listening to the Medusa podcast.
A resident of Kharkov with a disability near her home in the Saltovsky district, which was hit by Russian troops with a missile attack on April 23. Several private houses and cars were damaged. No people were hurt this time
Sergey Kozlov / EPA / Scanpix / LETA
Positions of Ukrainian artillerymen near Chasovy Yar
Russian troops are trying to capture Chasov Yar in the Donetsk region, a strategically important point on this section of the front. On April 24, The Wall Street Journal published an article about what Ukrainian defenders of the city have to face. The Ukrainian military, the publication writes, is counting heavily on its allies, primarily on the United States, where Congress, six months later, nevertheless adopted a package of military assistance to Ukraine. However, military expert and retired Australian Major General Mick Ryan noted in an interview with the publication, months-long battles for cities, as was the case with Bakhmut, cost Ukraine more than Russia, which is much larger in population, both politically and militarily . He believes that the Ukrainian authorities will have to make “some difficult political decisions.” “Do you hold on to territory and give up many lives? Or do you give up the territory and save your army? This is the position they are in,” he believes.
For every artillery shell Ukraine fires, Russia fires 10, and fighters say the ratio is getting worse, the publication said. On the front line, which runs through fields and villages east of Chasov Yar, the Russians are suffering heavy losses but are steadily moving forward, WSJ writes. Here and further in the photo are soldiers of the 22nd separate mechanized brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, holding the defense near Chasovoy Yar
Thomas Peter / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA
Ukrainian troops, the article says, are exhausted after months of continuous fighting and are experiencing an acute shortage of human resources. Due to the lack of people, the article says, many military personnel, instead of spending five days on the front line as required by rotation, spend 10-15 days there. During this time, fighters sometimes run out of food, water and medicine.
Thomas Peter / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA
“The drones are hunting for vehicles that bring fresh forces to the front line. Wounded soldiers who could have been helped are dying while waiting to be evacuated because no one can reach them, WSJ writes. “Even our commanders are in positions with us, because we don’t have enough people,” the publication quotes a 38-year-old Ukrainian Armed Forces soldier who uses the call sign “Kipish.”
Thomas Peter / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA
The Ukrainian troops near Chasovy Yar, the publication notes, lack ammunition. As a 50-year-old driver with the call sign “Chizhik”, who is engaged in evacuating the wounded, said, when he goes to the front line, he radios for artillery cover, but, according to him, often receives the answer “No.” “They say: ‘Sorry, we don’t have enough shells,’” the military publication quotes. Russian troops do not experience a shortage of shells. “They can shoot trees just for fun,” a 29-year-old fighter with the call sign “Nemo” told the publication. “We can only respond when we are 100% sure of the target.”
Thomas Peter / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA
Construction work in occupied Mariupol
Russian troops captured Mariupol in the spring of 2022. During the fighting in the city, almost 90% of the buildings were destroyed, thousands of Mariupol residents died. The Russian authorities have launched large-scale construction in Mariupol. During which, in particular, human rights activists believe, traces of war crimes are destroyed.
In August 2022, the Russian Ministry of Construction announced that it plans to “restore” Mariupol in three years. In February 2024, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin claimed that the restoration of apartment buildings in the city had almost been completed
Vladimir Aleksandrov / Anadolu / Getty Images
To obtain new housing, Mariupol residents left without it must provide the occupation administration with documents for their lost property. However, even if the documents have been preserved, Mediazona wrote, there is no guarantee that new housing will be provided
Vladimir Aleksandrov / Anadolu / Getty Images
Mariupol resident Nikolai Osychenko told Mediazona that first of all, officials from the occupation administration and visiting builders receive housing. Some residents of Mariupol, he said, were “temporarily” resettled in shelters, while others still live in basements
AFP/Scanpix/LETA
According to Osychenko, construction is underway in the center of Mariupol and areas at the entrance to the city from Donetsk and Zaporozhye. On the left bank (where, in particular, the Azovstal plant is located), which is closer to Russia, “the ass is such that oh-oh-oh,” “almost everything is broken,” he said
AFP/Scanpix/LETA
The project of “restoration” of occupied Mariupol was supervised by Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Timur Ivanov, and he wrote Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s project “Dossier”. On April 23, it became known that Ivanov became a defendant in a criminal case. The Investigative Committee officially announced that he was being investigated under the article of receiving a bribe on an especially large scale, without specifying details. “Important Stories,” citing sources in the FSB, claim that Ivanov is suspected of treason, and “a bribe is for the public.”
AFP/Scanpix/LETA
The main photographs of the previous – seven hundred and eighty-ninth – day of the war can be viewed at this link.
Tags: Russia continuously attacks Chasov Yar Ukraine holds line shells Russian troops suffering heavy losses steadily moving ninetieth day war Photos
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