Day 141 of the Invasion of Ukraine: At least 8 Dead, including a Child after Russian Strike over Vinnytsia

After the shelling, a fire broke out in the center of Vinnytsia

Here are the highlights of events related to the war in Ukraine over the past 24 hours:

At least eight dead, including a child, and 30 injured after Russian rocket fire over Vinnytsia

Thirty wounded and eight dead, including a child - this is the total so far (12:30 p.m.) from Russian rocket fire over Vinnytsia, Ukrainian police reported, quoted by UNIAN.

According to preliminary information, 3 Russian missiles hit a building with office premises. The officers' council building and nearby apartment blocks were also affected.

"A fire broke out on the spot, which spread to the parking lot. At the moment, about 50 cars are burning there. The rescuers are working to put out the flames," says the police report.

Firefighters battle flames from burning cars:

About 90 victims have sought help in medical facilities, and about 50 of them are in serious condition. It was found that the premises of one of the medical centers were also destroyed. The police in Vinnytsia have set up a mobile phone center for citizens (37 Zamostyanska St.) and have opened hotlines for searching for missing people.

A specialized investigative and operational group from the Main Investigation Department of the National Police and a forensic medical laboratory were sent to Vinnytsia.

Earlier in the day, there were several explosions in the city. The city council first reported one explosion, then added more information. Residents of Vinnytsia post a photo of a column of smoke over the city without specifying its location. They also reported hearing several explosions.

The chairman of the regional state administration of Vinnytsia, Sergey Borzov, confirmed what was happening in the city.

"There are dead and wounded. Their number is in the process of being specified. Four missiles over the region were shot down by air defense forces," he said.

“Rocket attacks in the city center. There are wounded and dead, including a small child.“

“Every day, Russia destroys civilians, kills Ukrainian children, directs missiles at civilian objects. Where there is nothing military. What is this if not an act of terrorism?”

“Inhumans. A country where there is murder. A terrorist country," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on his Telegram channel.

Czech Republic: Natural gas will not be included in the next package of EU sanctions against Russia

The European Union is preparing a seventh package of sanctions against Moscow, but it is already clear that it will not include restrictions on the import of Russian gas because too many member countries cannot adjust quickly enough, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said in an interview with Reuters.

Fiala said the sanctions, now being finalized by the European Commission and aimed at increasing pressure on Russia's invasion of Ukraine, are expected to ban imports of Russian gold, expand the list of dual-use goods banned from exports to Russia and to be targeted at more individuals.

The European Commission should be ready to present the package in the coming days and member states can approve it immediately afterwards, Fiala said in his interview with Reuters.

"A seventh package is being prepared and I think this is a good move. What is definitely problematic is the inclusion of energy in the sanctions, because the rule must be respected that the sanctions must have a greater negative impact on Russia than on the countries that impose them," Fiala noted, stressing that the new sanctions package will not include Russian natural gas, as many EU member states depend on it.

The Czech Republic, which took over the EU's rotating six-month presidency on July 1, is one of those countries dependent on Russia for almost all of its gas needs.

Overall, the EU relied on Russia for 40% of the gas it used before Moscow invaded Ukraine.

Petr Fiala said the Czechs were doing everything they could to reduce their dependence on Russian energy, "but that won't happen this winter."

The first six rounds of sanctions approved by the EU included asset freezes and visa bans on Russian oligarchs and officials, export controls, an asset freeze on the Russian Central Bank, the exclusion of commercial banks from the SWIFT payments system, and a ban on the import of Russian coal and oil.

But Russian gas imports have not been affected by the sanctions so far, despite calls from Ukraine for such an embargo.

The latest sanctions are being prepared amid growing fears in Europe that Russia may extend planned maintenance on the key Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline, which began on July 11 and is due to last 10 days, until July 21. This would further reduce European supplies and disrupt countries' plans to fill their storage to 80% by winter, causing an energy crisis in the EU.

In this regard, Petr Fiala said that Europe should be prepared for the possibility that Nord Stream 1 gas flows may not be resumed, looking for alternative sources of gas supply, such as liquefied natural gas (LNG), as well as being in willingness to share gas supplies between member states.

Another idea the Czech prime minister supports is to start joint gas purchases in Europe, but he warned that this remains a difficult undertaking, both technically and administratively.

"I don't want to be too optimistic," he said when asked if joint purchases could start as early as this year, adding that EU energy ministers would discuss the proposal at an emergency meeting on July 26.

Zakharova: The US has passed intelligence data on strikes on Donbas to Kyiv

The United States has been providing Kyiv with intelligence and has sent instructors to Ukraine to lead strikes with HIMARS multi-purpose missile systems against residents of Donbas, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

She drew attention to the fact that the Ukrainian side does not stop shelling the territories of the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR), "selectively targeting residential areas, shops, markets, health facilities and other social facilities".

"The armed forces of Ukraine used everywhere HIMARS missile launchers obtained from the United States of America, and they did it with the direct help of the American side, which not only provided the necessary intelligence but also secretly sent instructors who helped the representatives of the Kyiv regime ‘to aim correctly’", notes the diplomat.

“The delivery of these heavy weapons is connected with the remarkable activation of the artillery of the Ukrainian armed forces, which apparently received orders from Kyiv to use these installations against the civilian population without hesitation,“ Zakharova added.

She stated that the list of settlements in DPR, LPR and Kherson Oblast that suffered from "such barbaric bombings" "can be added every day". According to Zakharova, the US is "more than satisfied" with this situation.

"There is no other explanation for Washington's intention announced on July 8 to deliver four more HIMARS missile systems, ammunition and spare parts to Ukraine. About 2.7 billion dollars have been set aside for this purpose," explained the Russian diplomat.

On June 1, the US announced that it was providing Ukraine with a new 0 million military aid package, which includes HIMARS and ammunition.

Follow Novinite.com on Twitter and Facebook

Write to us at editors@novinite.com

Информирайте се на Български - Novinite.bg

/OFFNews, BNR, Nova

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!