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Russian warplanes bombed Lviv and Kiev on Saturday as Moscow unveiled its plan to launch more missile strikes on Ukrainian cities following the sinking of its Black Sea warship Moscow.
In the besieged city of Mariupol, the scene of the fiercest fighting in Ukraine and the worst humanitarian catastrophe, Russian troops continued their advance, hoping to make up for their failure in the areas around Kiev.
Russia’s defense ministry said on Saturday it had “cleared” the entire urban area of Mariupol of Ukrainian forces and had blocked several fighters at the Azovstal steel plant.
Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov, quoted by the RIA news agency, said that since April 16, Ukrainian forces in the besieged port city had lost more than 4,000 people.
Moscow said its planes had hit a tank repair factory in Kiev, where a loud explosion was heard and plumes of smoke were seen in the southeastern Darnytsky district.
The Ukrainian military said Russian warplanes flying from Belarus had also bombed the town of Lviv near the Polish border, where four missiles were intercepted by Ukrainian air defenses.
In Mykolaiv, another town near the southern front, Russia said it had hit a military vehicle repair factory.
The bombings and rocket attacks followed Russia’s announcement on Friday that it would intensify missile strikes in retaliation for unspecified acts of “sabotage” and “terrorism”, hours after it confirmed the sinking of its warship “Moskva” in the Mediterranean Sea. Zi.
Kiev and Washington say the ship was hit by Ukrainian missiles, a clear demonstration of Ukraine’s military success against a much more armed enemy. Moscow has said its warship sank after a fire broke out on its board.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said 2,500 to 3,000 Ukrainian troops had been killed in seven weeks of war with Russia and about 10,000 people had been injured, but did not disclose any casualty figures among the civilian population.
In an interview with CNN on Friday, Mr. Zelenskyy said 19,000 to 20,000 Russian soldiers had been killed in the war. Moscow announced last month that 1,351 Russian soldiers had been killed and 3,825 others wounded.
Russia said Friday it would intensify attacks on Kiev and said it had used self-propelled grenades to hit the Vizar plant near Kiev, which it said produced and repaired missiles.
The attack followed the sinking of the main fleet of the Russian fleet in the Black Sea. Ukraine said one of its missiles had caused the sinking of the warship./VOA
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