In the middle of the center of Kharkiv stands a block of flats in cross-section. Something powerful has penetrated through the roof, tearing down floors and walls on all four floors. This is the effect of a Russian glide bomb. The bombs have an enormous explosive force, left behind major damage to human organs and a crater of a full 15 diameters where they hit. Olga Djakovetska was inside her flat when such a bomb hit the building last week. One person was killed and nine were injured. Djakovetska and her husband survived the attack. But one of the neighbors was killed. Photo: Jan Espen Kruse / news – When I looked out the window in the living room, I saw many destroyed cars and injured people. I understood that there had been an explosion, she says to news. – I mobilized myself in that moment. I thought about how I could help my husband and the cat. The strong fear came the next day. Using bombs from the Cold War An old Russian ace up his sleeve creates enormous destruction in Ukraine. The Russians have brought out old, heavy bombs from the Soviet era. At a factory outside Moscow, the bombs weighing up to 3,000 kilograms are given a modern navigation system with a high level of precision. They also get small wings that are activated in the air. The Russian Ministry of Defense has published images of glide bombs used against targets in Ukraine. Photo: Russia’s Ministry of Defence. With these effects, the bombs can slide diagonally downwards towards their targets, and inflict enormous damage on Ukrainian targets from a good distance – even from within Russian airspace. These have been one of Russia’s most important weapons in the Ukraine war, because they are very powerful, relatively cheap, and exist in hundreds of thousands in Russian warehouses after the Cold War, according to the BBC. The Russian Ministry of Defense itself has sent out a video of a glide bomb being launched from an aircraft. It is not known where or when the video was filmed. Photo: AP The glide bombs have turned the situation around at the front. A report from the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) states that they were decisive for the Russians being able to take control of the key town of Avdiivka in the occupied Donetsk region in February. And now Russian forces are using the bombs against Kharkiv in the north-east. Ukraine struggled to overcome them. A little over a month ago, this shopping center in Kharkiv was attacked. 18 people were killed, and dozens more injured. Photo: Jan Espen Kruse / news – Terrorizing people in Kharkiv Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj said at the weekend that Russia had launched 800 bombs of this type during the week that was. Many of them hit Kharkiv county and Kharkiv city. Those news have spoken to say that they are afraid, because they never know where or when the glide bombs will fall. They say it is a form of terrorism from the Russian side. – There are explosions from large bombs all the time. People die. Many people are hurt, says one of them, Oleg Shnurenko. – We can’t chase their planes away, because we don’t have air defenses. They use this to terrorize people in Kharkiv and throughout the county. Shnurenko says that those who live in Kharkiv are in a “sad situation”. Photo: Jan Espen Kruse / news About 30 kilometers away is the Russian border. The hard battles therefore rage only 15 to 20 kilometers from where Shnurenko is standing. Now Zelenskyj wants more air defense systems to stand up to the Russian bombing attacks. After promising statements from the US Department of Defense last night, it may look as if the wish will be granted at the NATO meeting in Washington next week. Bomb attacks “every day” “Kharkiv is invincible”, says a large poster in the center of the city, which is twice the size of Oslo. But the people who live here are very aware that the war is near. The night sky is lit up by explosions at the front every evening. The flight alarm goes off up to ten times a day. Every few days, bombs fell that destroyed large areas of the city. – Every day we are hit by bomb attacks, young Anastasia Kustava tells news. – We hear explosions from the front all the time. It’s scary to live here. Civilians suffered, and that is a great pity. The sign is by a building that is in the process of being restored. But the city is constantly hit by new attacks. Photo: Jan Espen Kruse / news news also meets the student Vitalij Kurshunmov (18). He, too, is affected by what is happening. – I was born in a nearby village, which is now being shot at by Russian soldiers every day. I’m afraid of the battles, and it’s terrible to live here. For a city with around one million inhabitants, you see few people in the streets. Many stay at home and hope they are safer there. – No one can imagine how horrible it is, says Djakovetska. Published 03.07.2024, at 10.21
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Kharkiv residents terrorized by old Soviet bombs – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
