After almost 10 months of war, the impact of Russia’s invasion on Ukraine’s children is truly devastating.
The UN believes around 400 children have been killed and more than 700 have been left with life-changing injuries since Vladimir Putin ordered troops into Ukraine.
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And, as the war is ongoing – making it harder to gauge the full impact of the atrocities in Ukraine – agencies believe the real figures are much higher.
Three Ukrainian photographers – Anastasia Vlasova, Alina Smutko, and Nina Sologubenko – have captured how children are coping this Christmas for Save The Children.
According to one mother, Oksana*, her eight-year-old daughter’s hair has started to turn grey from the stress.
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“Look at my elder daughter, she is only eight and she has grey hair. I do not tell her, but when I braid her hair, I burst into tears, because she is a little child and they saw such things,” she told the photographers.
“It was very scary sitting in the basement, knowing that if – God forbid – the house was hit, you would be buried. You worried about yourself at that point, you’re scared for your children.”
Twelve-year-old Karina* also told the photographers: “There’s going to be something lacking. You know, the atmosphere of Ukrainian Christmas.”
Olha*, mother of seven, told Save The Children: “This year the mood isn’t festive. We just wish the war would be over, to live peacefully.
“We don’t want anything, no Christmas, no New Year. How can we celebrate? People are dying.”
She said that at night they “fear every rustle”.
Here are just seven images which provide a snapshot into the lives of Ukrainian children under attack from Russia right now.
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The difficulties Ukrainian children are facing during this tumultuous period has not gone unnoticed in Kyiv.
The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy shared a video address on the first day of the new school year back in September. He said: “They stole part of your childhood, part of your youth…
“But you are free. You always will be. So be worthy of your will – and of our Ukraine.”
*Names have been changed to protect their identity.
“This thing was a huge shock,” Johnson alleged on Wednesday. “We could see the Russian battalion tactical groups amassing, but different countries had very different perspectives.”
He began: “The German view was at one stage that if it were going to happen, which would be a disaster then it would be better for the whole thing to be over quickly, and for Ukraine to fold.”
Germany had a substantial dependency on Russia’s fuel exports prior to the war, due to the Nord Stream pipelines which transmitted natural gas from Russia int Europe. However, it has been trying to wean itself off ever since the war started.
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Johnson then claimed there were “all sorts of sound economic reasons” behind that way of thinking, but added: “I couldn’t support that, I thought that was a disastrous way of looking at it.
“But I can understand why they thought and felt as they did.”
An aide of Germany’s chancellor Olaf Scholz has since rebuffed these claims, claiming that Johnson has “his own relationship with the truth”, and said the idea Germany wanted a quick end to the war was “utter nonsense”.
Scholz’s spokesman Steffen Hebestreit also told reporters in Berlin: “I think I can say that first-hand, because I took part in talks with the then British prime minister in Munich only a few days before the start of the war. Namely that he always has a very personal approach toward the truth.”
Germany’s economic cooperation secretary Jochen Flasbarth also tweeted that Johnson’s claims were “crazy”.
How crazy: The one politician with the highest lack of solidarity with Europe @BorisJohnson accusing Germany for leaving Ukraine alone. We were always on the side of Ukraine and supporting their economic and societal development by far higher then Johnsons UK ever did. https://t.co/9vUeDS18OI
The former prime minister also targeted France in his interview, claiming the UK’s neighbour was “in denial” over the possibility of a war on the fringes of Europe.
He claimed: “Be in no doubt that the French were in denial right up until the last moment.”
French president Emmanuel Macron led Europe’s attempts to prevent Vladimir Putin’s aggression tipping into war earlier this year, and even went to Kremlin just weeks shortly before Russia ordered the attack.
Then Johnson went after Italy. He told CNN that the Italian government, then led by Mario Draghi, was “at one stage simply saying that they would be unable to support the position we were taking” due to their “massive” reliance on Russian hydrocarbons.
However, Johnson said that once the actual invasion began, a sense of unity emerged.
“What happened was everybody – Germans, French, Italians, everybody, Joe Biden – saw that there was simply no option.
“Because you couldn’t negotiate with this guy (Putin). That’s the key point.”
He added in unusual praise for the bloc that the EU “has done brilliantly” opposing Putin.
“After all my anxieties…I pay tribute to the way the EU has acted. They have been united. The sanctions were tough.”
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Interestingly, the prominent Eurosceptic who led the Vote Leave campaign said that if Ukraine wants to join the EU “they should go for it and I think it would be a good thing for Ukraine”.
Ukraine has been vocal in its admiration for Johnson – and even tweeted out a suggestion that he return to Downing Street again after Liz Truss’s resignation, but it was quickly deleted.
New prime minister Rishi Sunak made his first official visit to the country last week, and pledged £50 million in defence aid.
Despite the ongoing support from Western allies for Ukraine, Russia has continued its relentless attacks on the nation, leaving entire regions without power as the winter looms.
Reports that Russian missiles have crossed into Nato member Poland, killing two people, have prompted alarm over the possibility of the war in Ukraine escalating into a much wider conflict.
A violent act on a Nato member – which Ukraine is not, but neighbouring Poland is – could trigger Article 5 of the military alliance’s charter. This “one-for-all and all-for-one” principle of collective defence means an attack on one is seen as an attack on all, and all members are expected to respond to assist their ally.
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What makes this especially worrying is triggering the article would increase tensions between the US and Russia, the world’s two biggest nuclear powers.
But, with details of the incident yet to be confirmed, the prospects of a World War Three-like scenario very much depends on whether it was a deliberate act or an error.
What is Nato and Article 5?
The military alliance goes by the acronym of Nato.
The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation was formed in 1949 to prevent a resurgence of nationalism and militarism in Europe after two world wars, and to deter the Soviet Union’s expansion.
Its membership has swelled to 30 member nations, and over the 1990s and 2000s its enlargement stretched further east to include the former Soviet republics of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Poland joined in 1999.
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Since the start of the Ukraine war, Sweden and Finland, which shares a 1,300-km (810-mile) border with Russia, have sought membership, marking a radical break in the policy of both north east European countries given their staunch military neutrality.
Members agree to mutual defence – military action – in response to an enemy attack. The principle goes: “An attack against one ally is considered as an attack against all allies.” This is Article 5 of the Nato constitution.
Because Ukraine is not a member of Nato, Western support for Volodymyr Zelenskyy has fallen short of putting their troops on the ground. US president Joe Biden has made clear his concern about further escalating tensions with Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Ukraine’s admission to Nato has been a stated goal going back to its constitution in 2002. And while Zelenskyy has announced Ukraine is formally applying for fast-track membership, it seems unlikely Nato will accept his application while a war is raging.
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Nato invoked Article 5 for the first and only time in its history after the 9/11 terrorist attacks against the US.
What has happened in Poland?
Since the war began eight months ago, there have been fears clashes with neighbouring countries such as Poland would up the ante dramatically.
On Tuesday, two people were killed in an explosion in Przewodow, a village in eastern Poland near the border with Ukraine. The Associated Press cited a senior US intelligence official as saying the blast was due to Russian missiles crossing into Poland.
The Polish Foreign Ministry late on Tuesday said that a Russian-made missile fell in eastern Poland and killed two people.
The ministry said foreign minister Zbigniew Rau summoned the Russian ambassador and “demanded immediate detailed explanations”.
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Biden, in his call with Polish president Andrzej Duda, “offered full US support for and assistance with Poland’s investigation” and “reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad commitment to Nato”.
Biden also spoke to Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg, who was among those to hold a call with Duda.
The Russian defence ministry denied being behind “any strikes on targets near the Ukrainian-Polish border” and said in a statement that photos of purported damage “have nothing to do” with Russian weapons.
So will it mean all-out war?
Experts seem to think the gravity of the situation depends on whether it was a deliberate attack – either to escalate the war or to test the West’s response – or an accidental misfire. In any case, it is up to Poland to decide the next steps.
Poland could instead invoke Article 4 – consultation with fellow Nato members if they fear their territorial integrity has been breached. This would likely give Poland more clout within the alliance and encourage the West to offer more military support to both Poland and Ukraine – support that falls short of attacking Russia.
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Too early to say if 🇷🇺 missiles/rockets hitting Polish territory were intentional or unintended.
But enough ground for Poland to invoke Article 4 – one ally consulting all others – followed by clear defensive actions such as augmenting 🇵🇱 air defence to re-draw @nato red line
Fabrice Pothier, former director of policy planning for Nato, told Sky News: “It’s too early to say if this was an intended attack, an intended strike on a Nato territory, or whether it was the misfiring of a missile or a rocket.
“However, even if that were the case, I think there is enough grounds for triggering what is just below Article 5, which is Article 4, which is Poland asking all Nato members to come to the Nato headquarters to consult each other to assess the threat and to take concrete action.
“This can be defensive, not going after Russia, but augmenting Poland’s air defence and obviously also augmenting Ukraine’s air defence, because Ukraine is the de facto first line of defence of the alliance.”
In October, British defence secretary Ben Wallace explained that the government is “deliberately ambiguous” about scenarios under Article 5 being triggered.
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He said: “Article 5 is very clear, an attack on one is an attack on all, that is solid and in concrete and will be stood by.
“Article 5 doesn’t necessarily mean all-out war, people sometimes think it means the whole thing, but nevertheless there would be a response to an attack on Nato.”
Ukrainians flags have been flown in the key city of Kherson after Russia abandoned the only regional capital it had captured since its invasion in February.
Video footage posted to social media showed the yellow-and-blue national flag being raised at the regional administration building.
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An EU flag was also visible in the pictures as Ukrainian troops were greeted by joyous residents in the centre of Kherson on Friday.
Dozens of Ukrainians have been filmed cheering and chanting victory slogans in Kherson’s central square, where the apparent first Ukrainian troops to arrive snapped selfies in the crowd at the end of more than eight months of occupation.
Ukraine’s defence intelligence agency said Kherson was returning to Ukrainian control and ordered any remaining Russian troops to surrender to Ukrainian forces entering the city.
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People in Kherson wave Ukrainian flags and shout “Glory to Ukraine!” as they wait for Ukrainian forces to enter the city.
As of Nov. 11, Russian forces have completely withdrawn from the west bank of the Dnipro River where the city of Kherson sits, said Russia’s DM. pic.twitter.com/iu0kUGfMg5
The Battle of Kherson is a decisive Ukrainian victory. And note it that the city is not ruined. This is how a true army of liberation fights the war — in a smart way.
“Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the heroes! Glory to the nation!” one man shouted in another video.
Russia said it had withdrawn 30,000 troops across the Dnipro River without losing a single soldier, but Ukrainians painted a picture of a chaotic retreat, with Russian troops ditching their uniforms, abandoning weapons and drowning while trying to flee.
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Ukrainian officials have not confirmed the city was back in Ukrainian hands.
A spokesperson for Ukraine’s military intelligence agency said “an operation to liberate Kherson” and the surrounding region of the same name was underway.
“It will be possible to talk about establishing Ukrainian control over the city only after an official report by the general staff” of the Ukrainian army, Andriy Yusov told The Associated Press.
Ukrainian intelligence urged Russian soldiers who might still be in the city to surrender in anticipation of Ukrainian forces arriving. “Your command left you to the mercy of fate,” it said in a statement. “Your commanders urge you to change into civilian clothes and try to escape from Kherson on your own. Obviously, you won’t be able to.”
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The final Russian withdrawal came six weeks after Russian president Vladimir Putin illegally annexed the Kherson region and three other Ukrainian provinces, vowing they would remain Russian forever.
Moscow’s forces still control about 70% of the Kherson region following the pullback ordered amid a Ukrainian counteroffensive.
The Kremlin remained defiant on Friday, insisting the withdrawal in no way represented an embarrassment for Putin. Moscow continues to view the entire Kherson region as part of Russia, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Ukrainian officials were wary of the Russian pullback announced this week, fearing their soldiers could get drawn into an ambush in Kherson city, which had a prewar population of 280,000. Military analysts also had predicted it would take Russia’s military at least a week to complete the troop withdrawal.
This was meant to enlist 300,000 men with previous military experience to boost the Russian forces, although the official decree did not specify a required figure.
But just a week later, Putin announced there would be “corrections” to the call-out after there were reports that people with no experience or those beyond the draft age have been called up.
He said: “For example, I’m thinking of fathers of many children, or people suffering from chronic diseases, or those who are already past conscription age.”
Now he has deferred conscription for additional categories of students, too.
More than 200,000 people have already been drafted in, according to the Kremlin.
Meanwhile, Russians have allegedly been fleeing the country in droves to avoid being called up to war and anti-war protests have broken out all over Russia. Data shared by Bloomberg.com revealed that 400,000 Russians have escaped to nearby states.
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According to OVD-Info, 2,418 people were detained for protesting against mobilisation between September 21 and 26.
2. And Russia still isn’t sure about its new external borders
Moscow annexed four regions of Ukraine last week, after holding sham referendums in each area – Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk.
Putin has since claimed that all four regions wanted to join Russia, although almost the entire international community still believes these areas are part of Ukraine.
And, in claiming the land for Russia without Ukraine’s permission, Putin has officially broken international law.
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However, Russia does not control any of these areas completely – many pockets are still rebelling against Moscow rule. As a result, Russia has still not entirely confirmed where it thinks its new borders are, especially as Ukraine continues to reclaim land.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov refused to give a solid answer about where the borders of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions should be following the annexations.
Asked by CNN, he said: “I will leave this question unanswered.”
He then added: “But I repeat once again: certain territories there will be returned and we will continue to consult with the population, that expresses a desire to live in Russia.”
This is only made more confusing by the decision to include these annexed areas in the Russian TV weather forecasts.
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3. Ukraine’s counteroffensive continues
Ukraine has reclaimed astounding quantities of land in the east over the last few weeks, amid claims that Russian soldiers fled or surrendered.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has remained confident about Ukraine’s success, believing the whole country – including the annexed land – can be reclaimed.
But, as Zelenskyy, noted, this reclaimed land is severely damaged.
He shared images of the recently liberated city of Lyman, showing how – even where Ukrainians comfortably declared victory – there is extensive tragedy left.
Zelenskyy wrote: “Our Lyman after the occupier. All basics of life have been destroyed here. They are doing so everywhere in the territories they seize.”
Our Lyman after the occupier… All basics of life have been destroyed here. They are doing so everywhere in the territories they seize. This can be stopped in 1 way only: liberate Ukraine, life, humanity, law and truth as soon as possible. pic.twitter.com/WInSrmQxsA
The 27 states of the bloc all agreed to a sanctions package on Wednesday. This is part of the ongoing sanctions meant to reduce Putin’s ability to attack Ukraine by reducing its income and forcing it to sell its oil abroad for less.
It’s also the eighth round of sanctions from the EU since Moscow invaded in February, signed off on Wednesday.
In response, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen wrote: “We will never accept Putin’s sham referenda nor any kind of annexation in Ukraine. We are determined to continue making the Kremlin pay.”
The West in general is also trying to reduce its reliance on exported Russian fossil fuels, so that Moscow can no longer use it for leverage.
5. Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant concerns grow
Ukraine’s largest nuclear power plant is still in the line of fire. Russia have attempted to annexe the region, and it has been occupied since the start of the war, although the plant itself is still operated by Ukrainian technicians.
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Head of the International Atomic Energy Agency Rafael Grossi is also expected to visit the Kremlin to discuss de-escalating the situation.
Ukraine’s government of Zaporizhzhia said this week that, “the enemy fired rockets at the regional centre and the outskirts of the city” during the night, meaning “infrastructure facilities were destroyed”.
Former RAF Air Marshal Edward Stringer told Sky News that Putin’s continued attacks on the region meant Putin was trying to “keep the world worried” about his aggression, and “employing terror against the civilian population.”
Despite these attacks near the power plant, the Kremlin has promised it is “fully committed” to not fighting a nuclear war.
It’s worth remembering, only last month Putin promised he was “not bluffing” when it came to using “all the means available to us” to win the war.
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6. Russia sounds warning to the US
Russia’s ambassador to the US, Anatoly Antonov, said Washington’s attempts to send more military aid to Ukraine were only increasing military tensions between Russia and the West.
He added that this was an “immediate threat” to Moscow, adding: “We call on Washington to stop its provocative actions that could lead to the most serious consequences.”
Moscow also warned that the US is a “participant of the conflict” after Washington announced it was sending another $625 million (£547 million) in military aid to Ukraine, along with advanced US weaponry.
In total, Washington committed nearly $17 billion (£15.15 billion) in military support since the war began.
Vladimir Putin finally admitted there have been “mistakes” over the partial mobilisation of Russian reserves, according to the Ministry of Defence.
His admission also came shortly before Russia lost another Ukrainian territory over the weekend, Lyman on Saturday. It was twice as humiliating for the Kremlin, as Moscow had actually just attempted to consolidate its power over land in the east by illegally annexing it on Friday and claiming it as a Russian soil.
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Here’s what you need to know about the latest development in the ongoing war.
Why is Putin’s admission important?
The Ministry of Defence, which revealed the Russian president made the confession while addressing his National Security Council last Thursday, explained that this is a rare acknowledgment the war is not going well for Russia.
According to the UK officials, Putin said: “A lot of questions are being raised during this mobilisation campaign, and we must promptly correct our mistakes and not repeat them.”
The MoD explained: “Putin’s unusually rapid acknowledgement of problems highlights the dysfunction of the mobilisation over its first week.
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“Local officials are likely unclear on the exact scope and legal rationale of the campaign.
“They have almost certainly drafted some personnel who are outside the definitions claimed by Putin and the Ministry of Defence.
“As drafted reservists continue to assembly at tented transit camps, Russian officials are likely struggling to provide training and in finding officers to lead new units.”
What is particularly surprising is this admission happened the day before Putin officially declared four regions of Ukraine part of Russia, after holding sham referendums.
Putin also confidently threatened to come down hard on Ukraine if it tried to reclaim any of the territory he had claimed as new Russian land only last week.
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What’s the latest from the frontline?
While the MoD only revealed Putin’s claims on Monday, he had actually said them last week – before the Russian Defence Ministry admitted it had withdrawn its troops from the strategic eastern town of Lyman, in the Donetsk region.
To recap, the Donetsk region is one of the four areas Russia annexed on Friday. In fact, Kyiv reclaimed the town just a day after Moscow “annexed” it.
Russia’s Defence Ministry tried to explain its retreat on Saturday, claiming: “In connection with the creation of a threat of encirclement, allied troops were withdrawn from the settlement of [Lyman] to more advantageous lines.”
“The enemy, having a significant superiority in forces and means, introduced reserves and continued the offensive in this direction,” it added.
It also alleged that it had inflicted heavy losses on the Ukrainian frontline but there is no evidence for this yet.
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Lyman was a strategic and logistical hub for Russia, and without it, Moscow’s supply lines will take yet another hit.
As US Defence secretary Lloyd Austin told Reuters: “And without those, [supply] routes it will be more difficult. So it presents a sort of dilemma for the Russians going forward.
“And we think the Ukrainians have done great work to get there and to begin to occupy the city.”
What does this mean for Ukraine?
Reclaiming Lyman is not just a boost for Ukrainian morale, but a strategic bonus.
Now they can move into the Luhansk region – which would cause particularly embarrassment to the Kremlin considering it announced this region fully occupied in early July, and also annexed it last Friday.
A spokesperson for Ukraine’s eastern forces, Serhii Cherevatyi, told Reuters: “Lyman is important because it is the next step towards the liberation of the Ukrainian Donbas. It is an opportunity to go further to Kreminna and Sievierodonetsk and it is psychologically very important.”
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy also vowed to take more areas after pushing Russia out of Lyman. On Saturday, he said: “During this week, there were more Ukrainian flags in Donbas. It will be even more in a week.”
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The Ukrainian president continued: “Ukraine will return its own. Both in the east and in the south. And what they tried to annex now, and Crimea, which has been called annexed since 2014.
“Our flag will be everywhere.”
The chances are high. The war in Ukraine is like a Jenga game — the Ukrainian military is gradually setting conditions, slowly and painfully, and then collapse happens momentarily. https://t.co/ClkQTwirdW
Amid continued reports of low morale among Russian troops, and a lack of training for new recruits, videos of Ukrainian soldiers dancing even before Lyman was successfully reclaimed have been widely shared online.
What does Russia think?
According to journalists who watch Russian state TV, commentators are struggling to spin Russia’s losses in Lyman.
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Julia Davis said the former deputy commander of Russia’s southern military district couldn’t explain the defeat, while the BBC’s Francis Scarr noticed how some TV channels just didn’t mention the battle at all.
Scarr claimed only Rossiya 1 was close to the truth when the host admitted there was a “difficult” situation emerging in the Donbas, but even the anchor still insisted that Russia was still “beating off the desperate onslaught of Ukrainian army troops”.
Meanwhile, Russians are said to be trying to flee the country in droves to avoid being called up to fight.
More than 2,000 anti-war protesters have also been arrested since Putin’s partial mobilisation announcement, according to the human rights group OVD-Info.
Stunned reactions keep coming in with respect to Ukraine reclaiming Lyman. Andrey Gurulyov, former deputy commander of Russia’s southern military district, said he couldn’t explain the defeat. He blamed in on a system of lies, “top to bottom” and was suddenly disconnected. pic.twitter.com/O4aoRqVx96
A defiant Volodymyr Zelenskyy has announcedUkraine is formally applying for fast-track membership of theNatomilitary alliance, cranking up fears of a full-blown conflict between Russia and the West.
The Ukrainian leader’s move appeared to have been prompted by Russian president Valdimir Putin holding a ceremony in Moscow to proclaim four partially-occupied Ukrainian regions as annexed Russian land, following a series of sham referendums. The land-grab breaks international law.
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A video showed president Zelenskyy announcing the membership bid and then signing a document flanked by his prime minister and the speaker of parliament.
“De facto, we have already proven compatibility with alliance standards,” Zelenskyy said. “We trust each other, we help each other, and we protect each other. This is the alliance.”
The announcement is likely to stoke Putin, who sees Nato as a hostile military alliance bent on encroaching in Moscow’s sphere of influence and destroying it.
In his video speech, Zelenskyy accused Russia of brazenly rewriting history and redrawing borders “using murder, blackmail, mistreatment and lies”, something he said Kyiv would not allow.
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“We trust each other, we help each other and we protect each other.”
Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Ukraine has formally submitted a fast-track application to join Nato. pic.twitter.com/8xq3mDr1aq
The military alliance goes by the acronym of Nato.
The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation was formed in 1949 to prevent a resurgence of nationalism and militarism in Europe after two world wars, and to deter the Soviet Union’s expansion.
Its membership has swelled to 30 member nations, and over the 1990s and 2000s its enlargement stretched further east to include the former Soviet republics of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
They agree to mutual defence – military action – in response to an enemy attack. The principle goes: “An attack against one ally is considered as an attack against all allies.” This is Article 5 of the Nato constitution.
Sweden and Finland, which shares a 1,300-km (810-mile) border with Russia, sought membership to Nato earlier this year following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but have faced a hurdle as its application needs the approval of all 30 current members, with Turkey raising objections.
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Efforts to join the US-led military alliance marked a radical break in the policy of both north east European countries given their staunch military neutrality.
Because Ukraine is not a member of Nato, Western support for Zelenskyy has fallen short of putting their troops on the ground.
Nato’s enlargement was Putin’s biggest publicly-stated grievance with the West during the build-up up to war, claiming the eastward expansion and potentially sweeping up the largest other former Soviet republic breaks promises.
Nato has been adamant it will not accept limits on the nations that it admits and has always maintained an “open door policy”.
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Will tensions flare up more?
Many will fear the countries are on a collision course that could lead to a bona fide world war.
Putin vowed to protect newly-annexed regions of Ukraine by “all available means”, a nuclear-backed threat where he also railled furiously at the West, accusing the United States and its allies of seeking Russia’s destruction.
Russia has repeatedly made clear that any prospect of Ukraine joining the world’s largest military alliance is one of his red lines and it was among the justifications he has cited for his invasion — the biggest land war in Europe since the Second World War.
Will Nato membership actually happen?
The immediate ramifications of the “accelerated” Nato application weren’t clear, since it requires the unanimous support of all members. The supply of Western weapons to Ukraine has, however, put it closer to the alliance’s orbit.
But it seems unlikely Nato will accept Ukraine’s application while a war is raging. Article 5 compels fellow members to actively defend it against Russia, a commitment that goes well beyond the supply of weapons.
Ukraine’s admission to Nato has been a stated goal going back to its constitution in 2002, but at the start of the war Zelenskyy accepted his country couldn’t join at present.
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“For years we heard about the apparently open door, but have already also heard that we will not enter there, and these are truths and must be acknowledged,” he said at the time.
Protesters in Moscow have chanted “send Putin to the trenches” amid widespread disapproval of Russia’s biggest conscription drive since World War Two.
Within hours of president Vladimir Putin ordering a partial mobilisation of reservists on Wednesday, rare protests were reported across the country that led to almost 1,200 arrests.
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Shortly after Putin’s address, Russian media reported a spike in demand for plane tickets abroad as some draft-age men headed for the border.
In the capital Moscow, hundreds of people gathered on the central Stary Arbat street amid heavy police presence. Protesters could be seen chanting “No war”, “Send Putin to the trenches” and “Let our children live” in videos published to social media.
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Putin’s risky order follows humiliating setbacks for his troops nearly seven months after they invaded Ukraine.
The first such call-up in decades heightened tensions with Ukraine’s Western backers, who derided it as an act of weakness and desperation.
Liz Truss accused Putin of “sabre rattling” as the UK prime minister addressed the United Nations General Assembly, aded that the Russian president is desperately trying to justify a “catastrophic failure” in Ukraine.
The total number of reservists to be called up could be as high as 300,000, officials said.
Despite Russia’s harsh laws against criticising the military and the war, protesters outraged by the mobilisation overcame their fear of arrest to stage protests in cities across the country.
Nearly 1,200 Russians were arrested in anti-war demonstrations in cities including Moscow and St Petersburg, according to the independent Russian human rights group OVD-Info.
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As protest calls circulated online, the Moscow prosecutor’s office warned that organising or participating in such actions could lead to up to 15 years in prison.
How many people mouthing off on Twitter would be brave enough to shout “NO WAR!” as they’re being carted off by four Russian policemen? Not many would be my guess. https://t.co/8bSpHWQRbz
Protests against mobilisation are taking place in several Russian cities today, mostly small-scale actions leading to a smattering of arrests. The woman’s sign reads “No to Mobilisation” pic.twitter.com/EbytXN2OQF
The Associated Press news agency witnessed at least a dozen arrests in the first 15 minutes of a nighttime protest in the capital.
“I’m not afraid of anything. The most valuable thing that they can take from us is the life of our children. I won’t give them life of my child,” said one Muscovite, who declined to give her name.
Asked whether protesting would help, she said: “It won’t help, but it’s my civic duty to express my stance. No to war!”
In Yekaterinburg, Russia’s fourth-largest city, police hauled onto buses some of the 40 protesters who were detained at an anti-war rally. One woman in a wheelchair shouted, referring to the Russian president: “Goddamn bald-headed ‘nut job’. He’s going to drop a bomb on us, and we’re all still protecting him. I’ve said enough.”
So, as the country comes out of this period of national mourning, here’s a list of essential news stories you might have missed altogether over the last 11 days.
1. Community tensions soar in Leicester
Leicester is famous for its multicultural population, but a spate of clashes in recent weeks has shaken the city to its core.
Violence first broke out after the India vs Pakistan cricket match a month ago, on Sunday, August 28, and more scuffles followed in the next few weeks.
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But, locals claim that the tensions began rising long before the match, with members of both the local Hindu and Muslim communities allegedly squaring up against one another, although the exact cause is still unclear.
The tensions seemed to come to a head on the night of September 17, when around 200 people – mainly masked or hooded men – gathered for an unauthorised protests in the east of the city.
All local officers available were called to the scene, and a stand-off followed, with police having to separate rival groups as they threw bottles at one another.
Police officers were even diverted from the Queen’s funeral in London to provide back up to the force in Leicestershire. They made 47 arrests in total and 16 officers were injured in the violence on Saturday night alone.
Claudia Webb, independent MP for Leicester East, said tensions had been simmering for “months”, and has previously claimed that some social media accounts were “preying on this unease” by “spreading misinformation”.
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In a Twitter post, she wrote: “There are reports of incitement to hate being targeted at those of Muslim and Hindu faith, which is being shared on social media to cause fear.
“Places like Facebook and via WhatsApp designed to ‘entrap’ members of the local community to attend a protest, sparked by hate.”
She claimed such posts were “designed to provoke additional clashes and to cause disharmony and distrust”.
This weekend we have seen unacceptable hate-driven violence.
Ours is a community of deep faith. Our unique cultural diversity is our strength.
Right-wing fascism and toxic extremism have no place in a civil society. Our communities in Leicester stand united against it.
Mayor of Leicester Sir Peter Soulsby has said these recent events have left him “baffled”, while Labour MP for Leicester South, Jonathan Ashworth, said the troubles were a “dark episode” where he and residents “rightly pride ourselves on celebrating our diversity”.
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Extremists, territorial rivalries and the influence of people from outside the city have all been blamed for supposedly inciting violence.
Webb also warned on Tuesday that the violence could spread beyond Leicester without central government intervention.
The Hindu and Muslim communities in Leicester released a joint statement two days after the violence at the weekend, saying: “We are from one family. We settled here in this city together, we fought the racists together, we build it up together. The recent violence is not who we are as a city.”
The Indian government has also released a statement, strongly condemning the violence.
“We have strongly taken up this matter with the UK authorities and have sought immediate action against those involved in these attacks.”
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2. Mahsa Amini’s death
Protests have broken out across Iran’s capital Tehran, following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman, last Friday.
She had been in a coma for three days after “morality” police held her for supposedly breaking hijab rules. She was detained outside a Tehran metro station, as part of the police’s clampdown on clothing.
Witnesses said officers beat her inside a police van which later took her to a detention centre, although police brigadier-general Hossein Rahimi dismissed such claims as “cowardly accusations”.
Police also claimed that Amini had suffered from “sudden heart failure” while at the detention centre where she was to be “educated” with other women.
Mahsa Amini, 22 yr old Iranian woman has passed away after being severely beaten by Iran’s “morality” police for improper veiling. Meanwhile, Iran w/its notorious brand of gender apartheid was elected in 2021 by the UN to its Commission on Women’s Rights.#MahsaAmini#مهساامینیpic.twitter.com/nVqZC7xngW
The authorities later released footage showing a woman they claim is Amini talking to a female official, who had tried to reach for her clothing. Amini then holds her head with her hands and falls to the floor.
The police, who described her death as “unfortunate”, said that Amini had “previous physical problems”, but her father denied such a claim, and claimed the CCTV footage is edited.
In protest to Amini’s death and the strict regime of Iran, women have since been seen removing their headscarves and cutting their hair while shouting “death to the dictator”, in what is believed to be a reference to the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Demonstrations in Tehran and western Iran over the weekend reportedly led to the death of two people during a clash with riot police.
Protests in Saqez, a western part of Iran, led security forces to allegedly open fire on a crowd as they tried to move towards the local governor’s office.
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Further demonstrators took place in Kurdistan’s capita, Sanandaj. Amini was an ethnic Kurd from Saqez.
Waving headscarves in #Iran’s protests is a brave act of defiance by women who are fed up of 44 yrs of suppression & abuse. Today, they are leading the protests. I’ve heard many mothers joined their daughters today to shout their anger and to say: enough is enough… #Mahsa_Aminipic.twitter.com/EddK4gnU0F
A devastating storm, Hurricane Fiona, has swept across parts of the Caribbean in recent weeks – and it doesn’t look like it’s going to slow down any time soon.
Residents on the Turks and Caicos Islands were urged to seek shelter on Tuesday, after Fiona had already wrecked havoc in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. The hurricane is expected to reach the southern Bahamas too, and the eastern Bahamas by Wednesday.
In Puerto Rico, the storm killed at least three people and caused significant flooding with more than 75cm of rain falling.
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It also caused a total blackout which isn’t expected to be fixed any time soon, especially as the territory is still struggling with its power grid after the brutal category 5 storm, Hurricane Maria, which knocked out 80% of power lines in 2017.
The weather in the US territory was still chaotic on Monday, with frequent lightning and rain. Torrential rain and wind then hit the Dominican Republic too, and it now seems to be building up in power.
The category 2 storm is expected to become a category 3 with winds beyond 111mph, which will make it the first “major hurricane” of the 2022 season, according to the National Hurricane Centre. By the time it reaches the eastern Bahamas, it could be category 4.
4. Typhoon Nanmadol
At least two people were killed as record winds and rain hit the west of Japan on Monday.
Prime minister Fumio Kishida even delayed his flight to New York for the UN General Assembly so that he could look at the damage of the 14th typhoon Japan has faced this season.
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There was major landfall near Kagoshima city on Sunday, before it hit the islands of Kyusha and Honshu, while rivers overflowed and roofs were ripped off by the strong wind.
“We need to remain highly vigilant for heavy rains, gales, high waves and storm surges,” a Japanese Meteorological Agency official said, according to Reuters news agency. At least 115 people have been reported injured and around 340,000 households lost power.
5. Putin moves submarines away from Crimea – but nuclear fears continue
Russian president Vladimir Putin has allegedly moved the country’s submarines away from the annexed peninsula Crimea.
As Crimea was seized by Russia in 2014 (and seen by some as the start of Russia’s war against Ukraine), it was thought to be secured under Moscow’s rule.
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But, as the UK’s defence ministry tweeted on Tuesday, Russia’s Black Sea Fleet “has almost certainly relocated” its submarines from Crimea to southern Russia.
The officials explained: “This is highly likely due to the recent change in the local security threat level in the face of increased Ukrainian long-range strike capability. In the last two months, the fleet headquarters and its main naval aviation airfield have been attacked.
“Guaranteeing the Black Sea Fleet’s Crimea basing was likely one of Russian president Vladimir Putin’s motivations for annexing the peninsula in 2014. Base security has now been directly undermined by Russia’s continued aggression against Ukraine.”
“The occupiers are clearly in a panic,” Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed on Monday.
Russia has also sparked fears of a nuclear war once again, after a missile exploded less than 900 feet from reactors of the South Ukraine Nuclear Power Plant, the second largest nuclear plant in the country.
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This is separate to the worries around the Zaporizhzhia power plant, which sits on the frontline of the fight between Ukraine and Russia.
The South Ukraine plant is far from the frontline, but the attack demonstrates the extent of Russia’s reach (if it did indeed come from Moscow).
Still, there was no damage to safety equipment, and the exact source of the explosion could not be independently confirmed.
Last night russian terrorists attempted to strike the South Ukraine Nuclear Power Plant in the Mykolaiv region. A missile fell 300 meters from the plant. kremlin’s nuclear terrorism continues. russia is the threat to the whole world. pic.twitter.com/aWhz8yNXWp
On the anniversary of two other significant earthquakes, dating back to 1985 and 2017, Mexico was hit by yet another earthquake which killed at least two people.
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The National Autonomous University of Mexico said there is no scientific explanation for why all three quakes would happen on the same day.
A 7.6 magnitude hit western Mexico on Monday, knocking out power and leaving people in Mexico City desperately seeking safety.
Hospitals were damaged, and other buildings collapsed onto the people within.
The US Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre also issued a warning for coastal areas, saying waves reaching up to three metres above the tide level were possible.
The September 19, 1985 earthquake killed thousands, and more than 350 died in September 19, 2017.
Here are three of the major events which unfolded over the last seven days.
1. Counteroffensive
Ukraine long-awaited counterattack in the south began this week, as the Ukrainian armed forces tried to take back territories seized by Russia.
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It comes after spending several weeks building up the attacks on Russia’s supply lines, weakening Vladimir Putin’s army behind the scenes.
Ukraine’s military hit out in eight directions at the same time, and claim to have broken through their opponent’s “first line of defence” and retaking small Ukrainian villages.
However, the second line of defence has been much harder to break.
Greece’s honorary consul in Kherson, Pantelis Boubouras told Al Jazeera: “The villages along the front line – these the Ukrainians broke easily. In the second line of defence, there was blood spilled. I heard 1,000 Ukrainians and 1,500 Russians [were killed].”
He added: “The second line isn’t falling easily. There are 25,000 to 30,000 soldiers, they’ve been there for five months and are very well-equipped and dug in.”
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Russia has denied that any territory lost, and claims 1,200 Ukrainians died in a single day during Ukraine’s attempts to recapture some areas.
But the Ukrainian military intelligence spokesman Vadym Skibitsky said Russia is looking to mobilise 90,000 troops in the country, after losing more than 47,000 throughout the war.
These would likely be made up of volunteers, reservists, and soldiers recruited over the summer, although low morale is thought to be affecting Russian ranks.
The offensive also came after Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned: “If they want to survive, it is time for the Russian military to flee.”
But, for the most part, the country is keeping its cards close to its chest when it comes to this offensive.
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It’s also worth remembering that this is not the case everywhere in Ukraine.
Citizens are still under attack elsewhere – Kharkiv city, in the northeast, is facing intense shelling, particularly in residential areas.
2. Mysterious death
Ravil Maganov, the chair of Russia’s largest private oil company, fell to his death from a Moscow Central Clinic hospital on Thursday.
The independent news agency, Interfax, claimed he “fell from a window at Central clinical hospital,” and then “died from injuries sustained”.
As head of Lukoil, he was one of the country’s business elite.
Maganov supposedly “passed away following a severe illness” but the news agency did not say what he was being treated for.
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Amid conflicting reports about his health prior to his death, it’s worth pointing out that Maganov is just one of several people with ties to the Russian energy industry who has died under unusual circumstances over the last six months.
One of the former top manages of Maganov’s company was found dead in May.
However, none of the deaths have been considered murders.
Lukoil was one of the few Russian energy companies which criticised the invasion of Ukraine, having called for a ceasefire just a week after it began.
Maganov also died on the same day Putin went to visit the same hospital to mark the death of former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.
It comes as the consequences of the war are starting to play out within Russia’s energy industry too. The Kremlin briefly cut off all Russian gas exports to Europe this week to squeeze countries which are providing financial aid to Ukraine throughout the war.
However, this does will Russia will have seen a fall in profits, on top of the extensive list of sanctions from the rest of the world imposed against it.
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3. Memes
In true 2022 fashion, memes have become a key part of keeping morale up for many Ukrainians over the last six months.
But it was only this week that the official Twitter account for the Defence of Ukraine (the government branch) retweeted one.
It wrote: “We usually express gratitude to our internationals partners for the security assistance. But today we want to give a shoutout to a unique entity – North Atlantic Fella Organisation #NAFO.
“Thanks for your fierce fight against [the] Kremlin’s propaganda and trolls. We salute you, fellas!”
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NAFO is a play on NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. Ukraine is not part of Nato but did attempt to join.
Many believe that it was fears Ukraine was getting too close to western organisations such as Nato and the EU (for which it is now officially a candidate for membership) prompted Putin to launch his invasion. After all, the Russian president did demand that Ukraine give up its attempts to join Nato just before the war.
But NAFO is not just a parody of a defence organisation, but uses memes to mock Russia’s military performance and take down its attempts to spread misinformation about the war online.
Always using an image of a Shiba Inu dog (from an older meme), the organisation has no formal name or leadership, according to The Economist, but activists online rally together to use it.
Jeremy Fleming, the head of the GCHQ, recently claimed that Putin has already lost the information war in the West. Writing for The Economist, Shashank Joshi concluded: “The self-appointed warriors of NAFO might claim a little credit for that outcome.”
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We usually express gratitude to our international partners for the security assistance. But today we want to give a shout-out to a unique entity – North Atlantic Fellas Organization #NAFO. Thanks for your fierce fight against kremlin’s propaganda &trolls. We salute you, fellas! pic.twitter.com/AfDnXf7pfc