Zelenskyy calls on the West to ease restrictions on Ukrainian attacks inside Russia

2024-06-30 22:37:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Zelenskyy calls on the West to ease restrictions on Ukrainian attacks inside

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine. Photo source: AP

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Moscow had dropped more than 800 bombs on Ukraine this week alone and called on Western countries to further ease restrictions imposed on Kiev over attacks inside Russia.

The call came after the Ukrainian military released drone footage on Sunday of dead bodies in a civilian area in the eastern city of Toretsk.

Attacks in the war-torn Donetsk region have prompted rescue teams in Ukraine to step up evacuation operations. Local officials said powerful Russian bombs have hit the city, while Moscow's attacks are forcing Ukrainian frontline units into defensive positions.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday that in just one week, Russia had dropped more than 800 bombs in Ukraine.

"Ukraine needs the necessary means to destroy the carriers of these bombs, including Russian fighter jets, wherever they are. This step is essential," he wrote in an online post.

It refers to Soviet-era bombs equipped with high-precision guidance systems that are dropped from an aircraft flying outside the air defense perimeter.

These bombs weigh more than a ton and cause colossal damage when they hit the target.

Rescue teams in Toresk helped elderly residents leave their homes.

"Yesterday there was an attack and our house was destroyed. It's very scary", said Oksana Zharko, who was evacuated from the city with the help of the authorities.

In recent weeks, Russian attacks have focused on the northern town of Chasiv Yar, as Ukrainian commanders in the area say they have had few resources available, largely due to a months-long gap in the supply of military aid from the United States.

Ukraine continues efforts to stabilize parts of its front line after much-needed military aid was approved by the United States in April.

President Zelenskyy called on countries to help Ukraine and further ease restrictions on the use of Western weapons to strike military targets inside Russia.

"Clear decisions are needed to help protect our people," he said. "Long-range strikes and modern air defenses are fundamental to stopping the daily Russian terror. I thank all our partners who understand this".

Hours after Mr. Zelenskyy's statement, Ukrainian officials said Russia had struck a postal warehouse in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city in the northeast, killing one employee and injuring nine others, including an 8-month-old baby.

About 24 hours earlier, Russian missiles hit a town in southern Ukraine, killing seven civilians, including children, and wounding dozens of others, local authorities said.

Ukrainian officials released pictures of dead bodies lying on a picnic blanket in a park in Vilniansk as well as pictures of deep craters near a building.

At least 38 people were injured in the attack on Saturday evening, authorities said, and declared Sunday a day of mourning.

Officials in Russian-appointed Donetsk, a city that is partially occupied and illegally annexed by Moscow, said Ukrainian strikes wounded a 4-year-old boy and a 15-year-old girl on Sunday. According to Russia's Emergencies Ministry, four of its members were hit by airstrikes while trying to put out a fire in the regional capital, also called Donetsk.

The Russian Ministry of Defense said on Sunday that its forces shot down over 72 Ukrainian drones in the last few hours./VOA