Live: Russia puts Wagner military contractors in charge of parts of front line
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Issued on: 29/07/2022 – 07:02
Russia has given the controversial private military firm Wagner Group responsibility for parts of the front line in eastern Ukraine as it faces a shortage of combat infantry, Britain’s ministry of defence said in an intelligence update on Friday. Follow our liveblog for all the latest developments. All times are Paris time (GMT+2).
9:46am: Four killed in Russian attack on Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv
At least four people were killed and seven wounded in a Russian missile strike on the southeastern Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv on Friday, the regional governor said.
Vitaliy Kim, governor of the Mykolaiv region, said on the Telegram messaging app that at least some of the wounded had been near a public transport stop.
8:50am: Russia strikes northern Ukraine, including from Belarus
Russian forces launched a missile attack on the Kyiv area for the first time in weeks Thursday and struck the northern Chernihiv region, including with missiles fired from neighbouring Belarus.
Russia attacked the Kyiv region with six missiles launched from the Black Sea, hitting a military unit in the village of Liutizh on the outskirts of the capital, according to Oleksii Hromov, a senior official with Ukraine’s General Staff.
He said that the attack ruined one building and damaged two others, and that Ukrainian forces shot down one of the missiles in the town of Bucha.
Fifteen people were wounded in the Russian strikes, five of them civilians, Kyiv regional Governor Oleksiy Kuleba said.
Chernihiv regional Governor Vyacheslav Chaus reported that the Russians also fired missiles from the territory of Belarus at the village of Honcharivska. The Chernihiv oblast had not been targeted in weeks.
Russian troops withdrew from the Kyiv and Chernihiv regions months ago after failing to capture either.
6:37am: Russia’s Wagner given responsibility for parts of front line, UK says
Russian private military firm Wagner has likely been allocated responsibility for specific sectors of the front line in eastern Ukraine, possibly as Russia is facing a major shortage of combat infantry, Britain’s Ministry of Defence said in an intelligence update on Friday.
“This is a significant change from the previous employment of the group since 2015, when it typically undertook missions distinct from overt, large-scale regular Russian military activity,” Britain said in a regular intelligence bulletin on Twitter.
It also said that Wagner’s forces are highly unlikely to be sufficient to make a significant difference in the trajectory of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
(FRANCE 24 with AP, AFP and REUTERS)