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Al-Jazeera correspondent in the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, said that Russian forces were attacking the city from several directions, while the Ukrainian army stated that it had repelled a Russian attack on a military base in the capital, and that Russian soldiers were trying to control a power plant, while Moscow said that its army had entered the city of Melitopol in southern Ukraine. without resistance.
Today, Saturday, Ukrainian forces said that they repelled a night attack by Russian soldiers on one of their positions on Victory Street, one of the main streets in the capital, Kiev, and Reuters news agency quoted the Ukrainian army as saying that Russian forces attacked a military base in Kiev.
On the other hand, the Ukrainian Interfax agency reported that Russian soldiers were trying to seize a power plant in Kiev, and Ukrainian media indicated that the station was located in the northern districts of the capital.
Russian attack in the Peremohy (“victory”) Avenue in Kyiv has been repelled, the military say. pic.twitter.com/oACVjfNOip
— Illia Ponomarenko (@IAPonomarenko) February 26, 2022
Al-Jazeera correspondent in Kiev said that Russian forces were attacking the southwestern side of the Ukrainian capital, and an explosion was heard in the west of the city.
And the Ukrainian Air Force Command said yesterday, Friday, that the Russian army is trying to land paratroopers in the town of Vasylkiv, on the southern outskirts of the capital, Kiev, and that the Ukrainian army has shot down a Russian military transport plane “Ilyushin il-76”, which crashed in Vasylkiv. (35 km southwest of Kiev).
The Ukrainian authorities also stated that fighting with Russian forces continues in the outskirts of Kiev from the east, and Al-Jazeera correspondent reported hearing explosions in several areas of the capital, and there were reports of battles taking place in the Apollon neighborhood, north of Kiev.
A Ukrainian security source had told Al Jazeera – yesterday, Friday – that fierce fighting had taken place in Apollon, and that the residents of the neighborhood had participated in confronting the advance of Russian armor. The Ukrainian army had deployed its tanks in the area before the arrival of the Russian forces.
Vandalism
The Ukrainian Defense Ministry stated that a special division of Russian forces was carrying out a sabotage operation in the capital, and the ministry asked civilians in the Apollon neighborhood to take up arms, and report “the enemy’s movements, making Molotov cocktails, and neutralizing the occupier.”
On Friday, the capital’s authorities advised residents of Apollon to stay off the streets, as “active hostilities” approached the area. “As hostilities approach, we ask residents of the Apollon area to avoid leaving” their homes, the city council said in a warning.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had predicted hours ago that the Russian army would storm Kiev during the night, calling on the Ukrainians to protect the capital.
“The enemy is working with all its might to break us, and tonight it will attack with force, and the fate of Ukraine will be decided tonight,” President Zelensky added, noting that many cities of his country are under Russian bombardment, especially Kiev.
In the same context, Ukraine’s delegate to the United Nations, Sergey Kislitsa, said that his country’s fate is now decided, adding in a Security Council session today that his country “will not surrender even if Russia succeeds in temporarily occupying additional parts of our lands.”
While the Russian Defense Ministry stated that the Russian army isolated Kiev from the west, noting that it would not bomb residential areas in the capital.
The British Ministry of Defense said that Russian forces are advancing towards Kiev from several axes, in an attempt to encircle the capital, which has been subjected to ballistic missile strikes in the past two days.
And the American network “CNN” (CNN) quoted US officials that the Russian advance towards the capital was reinforced by Russian forces that came from Russia and Belarus from two axes to encircle Kiev.
strategic airport
On the other hand, the Russian Defense Ministry said that its forces had taken control of the strategic Gostomel airport, located on the northwestern outskirts of the Ukrainian capital, and added that it had dropped paratroopers in the area, and was able to isolate Kiev from the western side.
The Russian Defense Ministry stated that it had killed more than 200 members of the Ukrainian special units, during their battles to seize Gostomel airport.
The ministry added that the Russian forces entered the city of Melitopol (south) without resistance after an amphibious landing operation, and the city is located near the Ukrainian Crimea, which Russia annexed to it in 2014.
As Russian forces advance towards Kiev, Russian President Vladimir Putin calls on the Ukrainian army to seize power. “I once again appeal to the servicemen of the Ukrainian armed forces … do not allow neo-Nazis and nationalists to use your children, wives and elders as human shields,” Putin told a televised meeting of the Russian Security Council.
“Take control, and it will be easier for us to reach an agreement,” he added.
shoot down planes
The Ukrainian Defense Ministry said that its forces had shot down a Russian plane in the Vasylkiv region on the southern outskirts of Kiev, and the mayor of the western city of Vinnytsia stated that another Russian plane was shot down near the Kalinovka region in northwestern Ukraine.
And Anadolu Agency reported that the Ukrainian Air Force hit at dawn on Saturday a Russian Su-25 helicopter and fighter in the Donbass region in the east of the country.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense stated that the losses of the Russian forces since the beginning of their invasion of Ukraine at dawn last Thursday amounted to a thousand people. Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Hana Malyar said that the Russian forces have lost about 2,800 soldiers and 80 tanks, since the start of their attack on Ukraine.
The American company, “Maxar”, which specializes in satellite imagery, said that images taken on Friday show a number of large deployments of ground forces, and about 150 transport helicopters, in southern Belarus, about 30 km from the border with Ukraine.
American munitions
On the other hand, Philip Reeker, US Assistant to the President for European Affairs, said that ammunition continues to flow into the Ukrainian army, and a spokesman for the US Department of Defense (Pentagon) stated that Washington will provide additional defense aid to Ukraine and is discussing how to do this.
The ministry added that the Russians were unable to implement their military plans in Ukraine during the past 24 hours, adding that Washington believes that the Russian president did not enter Ukraine the majority of the combat force that he had mobilized in its vicinity.
The American channel, NBC, said that the US National Security Council is looking into whether Washington would become a party to the conflict between Kiev and Moscow, if it provided lethal aid to Ukraine.
And the American channel “NBC” (NBC) reported that the US National Security Council is considering whether Washington would become a party to the conflict between Kiev and Moscow, if it provided lethal aid to Ukraine.
A senior official in the US Department of Defense (Pentagon) said on Friday that Russian forces are conducting a naval landing in Mariupol, overlooking the Sea of Azov, southern Ukraine, and deploying thousands of soldiers there. The official stated that the Russian forces advancing from the Crimean peninsula were divided into two axes towards the cities of Kherson and Mariupol.
The US official indicated that the resistance that the Russians are facing in Ukraine is stronger than they expected, and that there are indications that they have lost part of the momentum of their advance, stressing that the Russian forces have not yet controlled any Ukrainian population centers.
In a related context, the administration of US President Joe Biden and congressional aides said – yesterday, Friday – that the White House asked Congress to approve funding worth 6.4 billion dollars, to confront the humanitarian and security crisis in Ukraine following the Russian invasion.
The request submitted on Friday includes: $2.9 billion in security and humanitarian aid, and $3.5 billion for the Ukrainian Defense Ministry.
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